Federal Lawsuit Shows We’ve Been Duped
Adams & Hochul Say “Asylum Seekers” Biden Admin Says “Workers”
While Mayor Adams and Governor Hochul talk of people coming in New York in droves to “seek asylum” to justify bankrupting the state by putting these arrivals into taxpayer care, a lawsuit in court last week on behalf of 21 states paints a different picture of what is really happening.
Illegal Crossings: A Problem Solved is a Problem Made
Just four countries have made up the largest number of illegal crossings at the Southern border (Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, Venezuela). So when title 42 ended in the Spring and the US could no longer stop people from coming in, the Biden administration worked with Mexico on a controversial solution...
Using a program that previously was intended for case-by-case humanitarian need, called “parole,” an individual, or group of individuals, who have not yet been granted the opportunity to stay legally can live and work in the US for a period of time without legal status while they are pursuing a permanent solution.
Using “parole” as its basis, Biden applied the principle to anyone coming from one of the four countries listed above. Explained clearly in the Miami Herald:
“Nicaraguans, Venezuelans, Haitians and Cubans who want to come through the parole program must first have a financial sponsor submit an application on their behalf. They must pass background and medical checks. Once approved for travel, they have three months to fly to the U.S., where border authorities will determine whether they are allowed to be paroled into the country. Once here, they can apply for a work permit. Though the program has been touted as a two-year parole, the administration has not said what happens after two years.”
We visited the Roosevelt hotel where in the back room a group of Haitian men were being walked through a session with city representatives. Haitians are the single largest group arriving to the city this year.
The administration has touted the program as a big win for “reducing illegal crossings.” Twenty-one states led by Texas disagree saying this not only is an abuse of the spirit of humanitarian aid but it’s forcing states to take on the financial burden of even more who will come to work and hard to deport after two years. And that is a real economic and societal question that we’ll need to address as well: what happens when those coming can’t work anymore?
While, of course, reducing the numbers coming in via human smugglers and other dangerous and illegal methods is certainly a positive pursuit, it’s only a band-aid solution. And for states like New York which offer shelter and ‘sanctuary state’ status it could mean a significant increase in numbers coming. Because, of course, if you are a state that provides shelter for all by law, and that does not support ICE in deporting those here illegally, well, you would be a great choice for a migrant looking to settle down, right?
Welcome to the Party New Yorkers
While the media has painted the lawsuit as coming from “Republican states” and kept it off local front pages, it’s fair to say that the concerns of Texas and the other states participating, resemble that of many New Yorkers as well. Most residents may also not know that our state has added its names to the lawsuit as a “friend of the defense” fighting to keep the program in place.
So what is the problem and what needs to be answered?
New Yorkers have been told repeatedly that they are caring for “asylum seekers” (used likely to engender sympathy) but available data shows that this is unlikely to be true and only causes further confusion and degradation of the program. In fact, ony 36,000 people were granted asylum last year in the United States. it is easy to see who is coming to New York via the Customs and Border Control website. The Justice Department also publishes asylum grant rates by country. All of this to say: the numbers never really added up.
We don’t know exactly who here is part of the parole program but we do know that Governor Hochul and Mayor Adams have asked Biden administration to extend this parole program to everyone who has arrived over past year (yes, even those not in a listed country but here after crossing the border). And the state has added its name to the lawsuit in defense of keeping the parole program.
At the same time the administration is pushing for work authorization, few are talking about a law that Adams has let pass (even as it’s being challenged) allowing anyone who has work authorization to vote. Yes, vote. Even those supportive of the administration wonder about conflict of interest.
What of need? Those coming into the Southern Border, in any case, have the self-selected bias of being young men. The majority making the dangerous journey are single adults. And the "parole” program does not take into account need as a criteria to apply. So New Yorkers would be forgiven for feeling anger at the obscuring of this fact.
From Humanitarian Need to the Luck of the Draw
Refugees are people facing “dire circumstances” abroad who are protected by international law, and eligible for asylum. They come from a number of countries and the US has committed to a “ceiling” of just 125,000 resettlements of which last year they only achieved 25,000.
What’s the point? While cities and states like New York are financially supporting migrants coming to work, politicians are deceptively suggesting that our sacrifice of soccer fields and services for the vulnerable are for “humanitarian” reasons. But that is not factual. Click here to find letters from Congress showing how the humanitarian refugee situation is not being addressed.
Bottom line, we can’t let partisan bicking, word salad and deception keep us from facts that we all need to formulate our own opinions.