Kevin McCarthy tears into Biden for making it 'EASIER' for migrants with I.D. cards

Kevin McCarthy said President Joe Biden continues to implement policies that make it ‘easier’ for illegal immigrants to come to the U.S. as the administration works to roll out a program providing I.D. cards to migrants.

‘During the worst border crisis in history, the Biden administration is now handing out ID cards to illegal migrants to make it easier to travel throughout the United States,’ the House Minority leader told DailyMail.com.

‘This is the exact opposite of what he should be doing,’ McCarthy added.

The Biden administration plans to launch an initiative giving temporary I.D. cards to migrants awaiting decisions on their immigration proceedings so they can more easily access services and government benefits.

Illegal immigrants and asylum-seeking migrants awaiting final decisions on their cases often have difficulty getting housing, healthcare and transportation without identification cards.

In order to relieve some of these obstacles, and serve as a mutual benefit to the government, officials are now considering a pilot program that would provide I.D. cards while incentivizing checks ins and more frequent communication with law enforcement throughout immigration proceedings, two sources familiar with planning told Axios.

The cards would feature a photo and biographic identifiers. It would also include ‘cutting-edge security features,’ an ICE spokesperson said.

Since the start of Fiscal Year 2021 in October, approximately 900,000 migrants have avoided detection when crossing illegally into the U.S., sources at the Department of Homeland Security told Fox News.

Half-a-million of those so-called ‘getaways’ happened since October 1, 2022 – and there are still three months left in the fiscal year.

Meanwhile, nearly 1.75 million migrants have had run-ins with Customs and Border Protection (CBP) at the southern border so far in Fiscal Year 2022 – the most of any previous year at this point.

The Biden administration is planning to launch a program that would provide temporary I.D. cards to undocumented migrants in the U.S. so they can more easily access government services and benefits

The Biden administration is planning to launch a program that would provide temporary I.D. cards to undocumented migrants in the U.S. so they can more easily access government services and benefits

The program comes after a new report indicates 900,000 illegal immigrants avoided detection since October 1, 2021 when crossing into the U.S. – on top of the millions who have been captured. Pictured: Drone video footage released earlier this month shows a massive mob of hundreds of migrants lined up crossing the Rio Grande in Eagle Pass, Texas

The program comes after a new report indicates 900,000 illegal immigrants avoided detection since October 1, 2021 when crossing into the U.S. – on top of the millions who have been captured. Pictured: Drone video footage released earlier this month shows a massive mob of hundreds of migrants lined up crossing the Rio Grande in Eagle Pass, Texas

Migrant crossings went on the decline from May to June for the first time in five months. For Fiscal Year 2022, CBP has encountered nearly 1.75 million migrants at the southern border

Migrant crossings went on the decline from May to June for the first time in five months. For Fiscal Year 2022, CBP has encountered nearly 1.75 million migrants at the southern border

Last year was the deadliest year for migrants at the border since the United Nations started tracking it in 2014, with 728 fatalities on the books.

The U.N. has counted 340 more deaths this year – but that comes after congressional mandates made it so CBP changed how it defined fatalities along the border to include only those who die in custody, during arrests or when agents were nearby.

CBP told Reuters there were 151 such ‘CBP-related’ deaths in Fiscal Year 2021, a previously unreported figure.

Any bodies that CBP discovered are not included in its data.

The new I.D. cards ideally would be provided to migrants who entered the U.S. illegally over the Mexican border but are not in detention centers or other unauthorized people going through the immigration or removal processes. 

It would allow these immigrants to more easily prove to authorities that they are already in the immigration system and ideally would provide incentive to unauthorized migrants to provide accurate information to the government on their location.

Currently, illegal immigrants going through court proceedings would need to physically check in with law enforcement at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) field office.

Administration officials are scrambling to get congressional approval before October to roll out the test program amid fears that a Republican takeover in November could prevent it from launching.

Congress included in its Fiscal Year 2023 appropriations bill $10 million for the so-called ICE Secure Docket Card program.

June figures show migrant encounters with CBP dropping for the first time in five months to 207,416. The month prior, CBP encountered a record-breaking 240,991 migrants at the southern border.

Despite the massive number of migrants coming into the country, a vast majority are being immediately processed and deported under Title 42, which allows expedited expulsion of illegal immigrants and asylum-seekers in a public health emergency.

Biden’s team tried to end the practice in May after it was first initiated under the Trump administration in 2019, but challenges in court led to it being upheld.

Plans for the new I.D. card program, according to the sources, would likely include a QR code that would redirect to an application that would provide the individual access to their court information and documents.

The hope is that this program would also help decrease the number of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests related to immigration cases.

Sixteen people are dead after a vessel carrying Haitian migrants capsized off the coast of The Bahamas on Sunday

Sixteen people are dead after a vessel carrying Haitian migrants capsized off the coast of The Bahamas on Sunday

Revelations of this new program comes after 16 people died when a vessel carrying Haitian migrants capsized off the coast of The Bahamas.

Four women and 17 men were rescued from the incident.

‘We mourn lives lost of those seeking a better way of life,’ immigration minister Keith Bell told Reuters. ‘Those here with families and friends in Haiti, encourage your loved ones not to risk their lives.’

The Bahamas police said the boat capsized some 7 miles off the island of New Providence.

source: dailymail.co.uk