Biden border crisis sets new records, DHS Inspector General report released

AP Photo/Fernando Llano

Fox News Channel reporter Bill Melugin is a thorn in the side of the Biden administration because he reports from the southern border on the Biden border crisis. The administration may not be too pleased with him today as he tweeted out some new numbers released by Border Patrol. Record numbers of apprehensions are being recorded in the sector, the most recorded ever.

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Melugin tweeted out the breaking news that the Del Rio sector recorded migrant apprehensions of more than 470,000 apprehensions in the fiscal year 2022. There were 160,000 confirmed gotaways and there were more than 260 migrant deaths.

Earlier Tuesday, Melugin tweeted out the breaking news that a migrant in custody in the El Paso sector was shot and killed atter he tried to get a Border Patrol agent’s gun. The FBI were on the scene and taking the lead in the investigation.

CBP released a statement which did little more than confirm the shooting.

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Also, a Texas National Guardsman stationed in Eagle Pass committed suicide Tuesday morning.

Statements from the top leader and Governor Abbott were released.

“We are deeply saddened to have lost one of our own today,” Maj. Gen. Thomas Suelzer, the department’s top leader, said in a statement. “We extend our deepest condolences to the family.”

“Cecilia and I are deeply saddened to hear of the tragic loss of a soldier with the Texas National Guard. Our hearts go out to the family and loved ones of the soldier,” he said. “Texas Rangers are leading the investigation, as the Texas National Guard and Texas Department of Public Safety coordinate with local law enforcement.”

He also pointed to mental health resources offered to military members by the Texas Military Department and the state’s health and human services agency.

This is the 10th known Texas Guard member linked to Operation Lone Star to die since September 2021. If the death is ruled a suicide, it will be the first suspected suicide since December 2021, the fifth suspected overall.

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More bleak news from the Biden border crisis was released Tuesday. A new Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General report delivered an assessment of six CBP facilities, including five belonging to Border Patrol, in the Del Rio sector. The internal watchdog’s report shows the sector’s facilities were overwhelmed in 2022 by the historic surge in illegal migration. The migrants experience overcrowding and prolonged detentions. The inspection was conducted in March 2022.

Overcrowding and prolonged detentions track with what has been reported from the border for months. We know that more than 2.1 million migrant encounters have happened this fiscal year across the southern border. The Del Rio sector has seen a 98% increase in encounters over last year’s encounters which were already historically high. So far, there have been 428,555 encounters in Del Rio in 2022 compared to 215,724 in 2021. There had been a 216% increase in encounters in the fiscal year before the March inspector compared the numbers to the same time in 2021. It’s no wonder that overcrowding is a problem and there are delays in detention.

The inspector general’s office looked at stations in Del Rio, Eagle Pass, Uvalde and Comstock. It found severe overcrowding and migrants being held longer than recommended under national standards for care in some of the Border Patrol facilities.

“We found that Border Patrol held 1,164 detainees in custody in four facilities longer than specified in the TEDS standards, which generally limit detention in these facilities to 72 hours,” the report said. “Three of the four Border Patrol facilities that experienced prolonged detention times were also overcrowded based on pre-COVID capacities.”

It said that the facility in Eagle Pass was holding over 1,000 migrants, despite its maximum capacity of 500. The watchdog found that Border Patrol also did not provide regular showers and interpretation services — although it did meet standards related to clothing, food, water and medication.

Meanwhile, at the four facilities experienced prolonged detention, 77% of detainees were held over 72 hours. Overall, 45% were held between 4-6 days, 30% held 7-10 days and 2% were held for longer than 11 days. Most of those held were single adults males. Just six family units were held longer than 72 hours.

The report also found that there were insufficient staff at the facilities with only 1,538 Border Patrol positions filled of the 1,700 authorized spots.

It also faulted four of the five facilities for data integrity issues related to the provisions of supplies, showers and meals. Some detainees were marked as having showers when they hadn’t, or had been given wet wipes instead. It also marked errors including male detainees receiving feminine hygiene products and diapers, and detainees marked as receiving multiple showers at the same time.

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Recommendations have been provided to help manage detention delays and a data integrity review. CBP agrees with the recommendations. The IG report shows that CBP adheres to standards related to property management, medication, and amenities.

It seems to me that getting more personnel on the ground is crucial to implement recommendations and to improve morale among Border Patrol. That should be a priority. The Biden administration has allowed Border Patrol to be in an impossible situation. We know it is unsustainable yet it continues and only grows worse. Joe Biden doesn’t care. He created a humanitarian and national security crisis with no regard for those left to manage his crisis.

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Ed Morrissey 12:40 PM | November 21, 2024
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David Strom 11:20 AM | November 21, 2024
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