The Department of Homeland Security is forecasting that border apprehensions of illegal immigrants will surpass the totals of the last 13 years in just 122 days, prompting a new push for President Trump’s $4.5 billion in emergency funding to handle the crisis.
To add an exclamation point on the administration’s plea for Congress to pitch in, acting Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan is leading a weekend trip with acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan to the Texas-Mexico border to oversee Homeland Security-Pentagon operations at the increasingly dangerous and populated border, according to law enforcement officials.
The trip by the nation’s two top border security officials comes after U.S. Customs and Border Protection released shocking new April border arrest numbers. The agency said it apprehended 109,144 in April, up from 103,719 in March.
Officials said the surge will surpass the totals of the last 13 fiscal years in early September. Arrests topped the fiscal 2014 totals last weekend.
An average of 3,891 illegal immigrants are apprehended every day, according to officials.
McAleenan and Shanahan are set to arrive in McAllen, Texas, Saturday. They plan to oversee Homeland Security and Defense Department joint missions, meet with officers and first responders, and inspect the humanitarian operations, according to officials. It is McAleenan’s third trip to the border as acting secretary and Shanahan’s second.
Some of those humanitarian operations are running short of congressionally approved funding. Trump has asked for an emergency appropriation of $4.5 billion and border lawmakers, like Arizona Sen. Martha McSally, have urged Senate leaders to act on the request.
At a House hearing last month, McAleenan listed what is needed to end the surge, adding, “Given the scale of the crisis, we will exhaust our resources before the end of this fiscal year, which is why the administration will be seeking supplemental funding to support ongoing surge operations, and provide critical humanitarian assistance for migrants.”
Homeland Security would get about $1.2 billion of the $4.5 billion:
- $391 million for humanitarian assistance that will fund processing centers at the border, transportation requirements, feeding and care of those in custody, and other needs
- $530 million for operations support on the border, such as personnel expenses, detention beds, transportation, and investigatory resources to counter human smuggling and trafficking
- $178 million for information technology system upgrades and law enforcement pay adjustments to manage the ongoing surge
“The problem we face is huge, short-term fixes will not cut it, and we need sustained investment and additional emergency support at the southwest border to overcome the humanitarian and security crisis. The president’s budget will do that,” said McAleenan, a longtime border official.
Democrats have started to express support for more spending at the border, but action has been slow on the president’s request.
