What leaked DHS data reveals about the situation at the southern border
The Biden administration has maintained that its policy at the southern border during the COVID-19 pandemic is to expel families trying to enter the United States. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, for instance, said there are only "narrow, narrow circumstances in which families can't be expelled." But Department of Homeland Security data leaked to Axios suggests expulsions are actually happening infrequently.
The data reportedly shows an average of 13 percent of nearly 13,000 family members attempting to cross the U.S.-Mexico border were turned away between March 14 and March 21, which Axios notes is "a sign of how the administration is struggling to keep up with a migration surge." But it also highlights the fact that Mexico has been unable to take in the amount of families the U.S. would otherwise turn away. "In situations where expulsion is not possible due to Mexico's inability to receive the families, they are placed into removal proceedings," a DHS spokesperson told Axios. Those proceedings can sometimes take years, Axios writes. Read more at Axios.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Political cartoons for January 18Cartoons Sunday’s political cartoons include cost of living, endless supply of greed, and more
-
Exploring ancient forests on three continentsThe Week Recommends Reconnecting with historic nature across the world
-
How oil tankers have been weaponisedThe Explainer The seizure of a Russian tanker in the Atlantic last week has drawn attention to the country’s clandestine shipping network
-
Why Greenland’s natural resources are nearly impossible to mineThe Explainer The country’s natural landscape makes the task extremely difficult
-
Iran cuts internet as protests escalateSpeed Reada Government buildings across the country have been set on fire
-
US nabs ‘shadow’ tanker claimed by RussiaSpeed Read The ship was one of two vessels seized by the US military
-
Maduro pleads not guilty in first US court hearingSpeed Read Deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores pleaded not guilty to cocaine trafficking and narco-terrorism conspiracy
-
Iran’s government rocked by protestsSpeed Read The death toll from protests sparked by the collapse of Iran’s currency has reached at least 19
-
Israel approves new West Bank settlementsSpeed Read The ‘Israeli onslaught has all but vanquished a free Palestinian existence in the West Bank’
-
US offers Ukraine NATO-like security pact, with caveatsSpeed Read The Trump administration has offered Ukraine security guarantees similar to those it would receive from NATO
-
Hong Kong court convicts democracy advocate LaiSpeed Read Former Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai was convicted in a landmark national security trial
