Panama's Foreign Minister Erika Mouynes tells anyone who'll listen that she warned the United States about last month's migrant surge. Unfortunately, warnings have no value if no one heeds them.
That was the case preceding the Del Rio bridge closure. U.S. officials knew that as many as 20,000 Haitian migrants were on a collision course with the U.S.-Mexico border. Yet, nothing was done to prepare officials, residents and law enforcement in border towns. (NBC News)
Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, and DHS' Office of Intelligence and Analysis all had information as far back as July that indicated that large groups of Haitians were making their way north from South and Central America to the U.S. border, the three officials said. But the intelligence was not shared widely enough within DHS and across agencies to indicate the size or speed of the group of migrants or that they would all arrive in one location.
In an interview Sept. 20 in Del Rio, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said, “I don't think we expected the rapidity of the increase that occurred.”
More Than an Intelligence Failure
At the same time, the failure didn't simply involve intelligence sharing or the lack thereof. Progressives in the Biden administration opposed proactive measures to deal with the looming crisis. These included deporting Haitians already in the U.S. illegally. They worried deportations would dissuade Haitian migrants from coming to the border. Furthermore, they argued that sending Haitians back to their native country would be inhumane following their president's assassination and an earthquake that claimed thousands of lives. (RELATED: Biden Blamed for Abuse Allegations Involving Unaccompanied Migrant Children)
Those voices won, further debunking the myth of President Biden's moderation.
The Consequences of Disaster
Hot Air's John Sexton explains how the consequences of Biden's decision-making continue to reverberate across the southern border.
All of this isn't just an academic argument over who was right or wrong. There are still as many as 60,000 Haitians headed to the border with tens of thousands more setting out from Colombia this month. NBC News reported last week that the Biden administration was expecting as many as 400,000 migrants at the border this month, which is more than some entire fiscal years of border apprehensions.
Numbers like that don't just happen. They are partly the result of situations like the earthquake in Haiti but also just as significant are the signals being sent by the Biden administration to would-be migrants and to smugglers who deliver them to the border. Since he took office, Biden has been sending the message that he is reversing Trump's border crackdown.
SEE ALSO: Judge's Ruling Springs Migrants From Texas Jails
Despite all of that, foreign Minister Mouynes continues to speak out. In the following clip from CNN, the Panamanian politician describes how migrants from Haiti arrive in Brazil and march to the United States.
After Mouynes met with Sen. Ted Cruz, the Texan Republican went on Fox News to issue a clarion call to all conservatives.
It seems unlikely that the administration will seriously attempt to discourage any number of migrants coming up through Central America. The White House clearly worries more about investigating false claims against Border Patrol agents than resolving our border crisis.
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.
Is it for the sake of the Future votes that we are now forsake our very own VISA LAWS at our borders! Are we now a LAWLESS NATION?