President Joe Biden is reportedly considering using executive authority to stymie the flow of migrants into the United States.
For years, the Biden administration denied the border crisis existed, insisting many times that America’s borders are “secure.” But the White House began to sing a different tune when it became clear that the $118 billion supplemental appropriations bill — which would have given Ukraine more than $60 billion and border security just $20 billion — would never become law.
To the objection of Republicans and anyone remotely familiar with immigration law, Biden told Congress to “just give me the power” because “I’ve done all I can do.” And when the bill died in Congress, Biden tried to blame Donald Trump and Republicans for the border crisis.
Now, Biden is considering issuing an executive order on the migrant crisis before his SOTU address.
But according to Axios, Biden isn’t planning to take action for the benefit of America. Instead, he’s concerned about political optics.
Axios reported:
One bold move that Biden has considered, we’re told, is an executive order that would dramatically stanch the record flow of migrants into the Southwest. This could even happen in the two weeks before the address, allowing Biden to say he took action while Republicans just talk.
Politics aside, the plan to use executive authority undercuts the entire narrative that Biden and his defenders have parroted for years. It both acknowledged the crisis and proves that Biden’s hands, in fact, are not tied.
Meanwhile, it’s important to remember that Biden already has the statutory authority to alleviate the migrant crisis. One of the most obvious legal tools is Section 1182(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
Section 1182(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act states:
Whenever the President finds that the entry of any aliens or of any class of aliens into the United States would be detrimental to the interests of the United States, he may by proclamation, and for such period as he shall deem necessary, suspend the entry of all aliens or any class of aliens as immigrants or nonimmigrants, or impose on the entry of aliens any restrictions he may deem to be appropriate.
The planned change in Biden’s tone and the urgency to shift blame for a crisis that unfolded under Biden’s watch is about countering fallout from special counsel Robert Hur’s report, which brought increased scrutiny to Biden’s age and mental acuity.
“Everyone around [Biden] is well aware — well aware — of the need to jack this campaign up,” a source “close to Biden” told Axios. “The only way to deal with the negative aftershocks of the special counsel’s report is for the president to be out there, to be visible — to be strong of presence and strong of voice.”
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