Biden, the Border, and Tik Tok Too
President Biden is in a pickle of his own making, and his efforts to deal with it are as idiotic and destructive as his open borders policy has been.
Last month alone over 300,000 mostly military age men illegally crossed our border, with the Border Patrol tasked to easing their invasion and even making them sandwiches rather than detaining and deporting them. Texas governor Greg Abbott directed his National Guard to obstruct their passage by placing floats in the river at the border and installing barbed wire topped fences at Shelby Park in Eagle Pass, Texas. He also spread the misery the border states were feeling by transporting many of the illegal crossers to cities that had virtue signaled they were “sanctuary cities,” cities that would not turn over illegals to ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) for detention and deportation. Now, those same cities -- which apparently thought El Paso was better able to handle housing and feeding and providing medical care for millions of largely needy military-aged men than they were -- are begging for help and federal money as they are overwhelmed by the task they dreamed would be shouldered by the border states.
Polls show that the majority of citizens are strongly opposed to this invasion. Former FBI officials have warned that this influx of unvetted invaders from around the world who have been allowed to travel freely around the country pose a serious national security threat. Still, the President, who blocked further construction of the wall Trump was constructing and ended the Trump policy of making asylum seekers stay in Mexico as their claims were processed, doubled down on allowing unlimited free passage into the United Sates. He demanded that Abbott tear down the border barriers. A federal court enjoined the Administration from removing the barriers to free passage into the country. (Most of these asylum claims lack merit, but it takes years to process during which time the applicants are living and working here.) “Border Patrol is being instructed to facilitate illegal entry at scale into the United States. The fundamental problem is that anyone can claim asylum with zero proof, which means all of Earth can come to America.”
The Administration sought relief from the Supreme Court and got it: The District Court injunction was lifted.
Abbott continued nevertheless to fortify the barriers. Governors of 26 states wrote in support of Abbott’s actions, some even have sent National Guardsmen and other law enforcement to help Texas defend the border.
Nothing, it seems, will stop Biden from pursuing this unpopular, and in my mind, illegal policy. This week, the Administration placed its hopes on a negotiated deal with Congress, tying an immigration “fix” with aid to Ukraine and Israel. Some Senate Republican poohbahs might be amenable but it doesn’t appear the House will go along with any such thing. To date no one knows what the specifics are except that the Democrats at the outset declared “off limits” any discussion about completing the wall. There’s been a perfectly good immigration law on the books for years which was passed by the House and Senate. It simply needs to be enforced, not ignored.
The open border administration is floundering between trying to satisfy more moderate voters (which unfortunately for Democrats includes many of the minority voters in their base who are most deleteriously affected by an open border policy) and its far-left youth faction.
First, they had the Department of Homeland Security demand access to Shelby Park, to remove the invasion barriers. Texas attorney general Ken Paxton made some counter-demands:
“By February 15, DHS must supply the official plat maps and deeds demonstrating the precise parcels to which they claim ownership, an explanation of how Texas is preventing access to those specific parcels, documentation showing that Eagle Pass or Texas ever granted permission for DHS to erect infrastructure that interferes with border security, and proof of Congress empowering DHS to turn a Texas park into an unofficial and illegal port of entry. If the federal government is going to make such claims, it must provide proof.”
In a sense, I’m sorry DHS won’t be getting access because one picture of them cutting the wire in Shelby Park should insure a Republican landslide victory.
The Administration at some point through the media remoras let it be known it was considering criminal action against the Texas Border Patrol. Unfortunately for that plan, the Texas Border Patrol doesn’t seem to be scared off.
According to a new post put out by the Border Patrol Union, and a new report from Griff Jenkins of Fox News, Biden has lost operational control of the situation, at least in a practical sense.
The Biden administration had initially warned Texas that it had until mid-day Friday to relinquish control of Shelby Park, the nearby boat dock, and the International Bridge. That deadline has now come and gone, and instead of there being a major clash between the Border Patrol and the state-controlled soldiers on site, it appears those on the ground have already de-escalated the situation.
The Border Patrol Union ends by slamming Biden for creating the current "catastrophe" and reiterating that there will be no conflict between CBP agents and state forces. The statement is a clear signal of support for the Texas National Guard, its mission, and those leading it, including Gov. Greg Abbott.
Rank-and-file BP agents appreciate and respect what TX has been doing to defend their state in the midst of this catastrophe that the Biden Admin has unleashed on America.
We want to be perfectly clear, there is no fight between rank-and-file BP agents and the TX NG, Gov. Abbott, or TX DPS. It may make flashy headlines, but it simply isn't true.
Furthering the division between the Border Patrol and the White House was a senior CBP official who said they have no plans to follow through on removing the razor wire put up by Texas. Biden has completely lost whatever leverage he had.
This is an incredible turn of events. I don't know if "mutiny" is the right word here, but clearly, Biden has no way to enforce his threats at this point. Border Patrol agents are not going to go along with it and short of using the Insurrection Act to mobilize the U.S. Army (and they likely wouldn't act either), this represents a major roadblock to the president's attempts to further destroy the Southern border.
All other pathways seemingly having been unavailing, the Administration attempted to economically punish Texas and, in the process, has helped Russia increase its economic hold through energy sales to Europe, strengthen China, cost American jobs, and irritated our allies while doing nothing to promote the “climate change” policies it also stupidly endorses. It announced a ban on further permitting of Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) exporting.
Nobody in the White House seems to understand that countries sign long-term contracts years in advance so they can plan their energy infrastructure and needs. They won’t build new gas plants or import terminals without supply locked in -- or they will turn to more reliable sources. Russia now looks like a more reliable energy source than the U.S.
Much of the supply from LNG projects in the works is slated for Asia. They would strengthen U.S. relationships and influence in the region to counter China. Xi Jinping no doubt is elated by the Administration’s pause, which will do more damage to U.S. strategic interests than blocking the Keystone XL pipeline.
Re-election imperatives have partly restrained the President’s attack on fossil fuels in his first term, but don’t expect the same in a second. Recall how the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in early 2022 backtracked on a plan to conduct greenhouse-gas analyses for natural gas pipelines and export projects after West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin raised a ruckus.
But Mr. Manchin is retiring, and Mr. Biden won’t need to worry about him in a second term. Nor will he have to heed voters in states such as Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin. Mr. McKibben will lead a no-holds-barred children’s crusade against fossil fuels. Is Mr. Biden trying to give Americans another reason to vote for Donald Trump?
The largest LNG operations happen to be in Texas and it is impossible to see this as anything but a means to punish Abbott’s closing of the border. It will do nothing to ease chimerical “climate change.” Natural gas is one of the most benign sources of energy, even if you subscribe -- and I do not -- to the notion that CO2 emissions need to be severely limited. What it will do is create great problems for our European allies and Asian countries who depend on and plan for steady supplies of energy to meet their domestic needs. Who dreamed up this ludicrous strategy? Apparently 25-year-old Tik Tok “influencer” Alex Haraus, who demanded Biden save the planet by killing the Calcasieu Pass 2 Natural gas Project.
It appears that having infuriated most of the country with an outlandish immigration policy, it hopes to pick up the ignorant youth vote to make up for the loss of millions of voters who see and feel the consequences of those policies.
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