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Tue November 07, 2023

By Press Release

Politics State

Westerman opposes the use of U.S. Airports to house illegal migrants

Bruce Westerman Aiports Migrants
Westerman opposes the use of U.S. Airports to house illegal migrants
WASHINGTON - Congressman Bruce Westerman (AR-04) joined House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Sam Graves (MO-06) and 68 House Republicans in a letter to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg demanding answers for the Biden Administration’s encouragement of the use of U.S. airports as shelters for illegal migrants. In part, the members wrote: “As you are aware, our Nation’s southern border is an uncontrolled and unmitigated disaster. Untold numbers of illegal immigrants have entered the United States and been apprehended under President Biden’s failed leadership. Many are then released into the United States, some of whom will presumably never be seen again. The Biden-Harris Administration’s abject failure to protect our border or support policies that will keep America secure is an unconscionable dereliction of the most fundamental duty the Federal Government has to the citizens of this country.” Congressman Bruce Westerman released the following statement:
“The historic crisis at the southern border isn’t just at the border anymore. It’s in our own backyards. Rather than implementing policies to stop the flow of illegal immigration and drug trafficking at the border, the Biden Administration shortcut NEPA to build housing for illegal migrants on National Park Service Land, and now reports are showing they are encouraging U.S. airports to house them too. The Biden Administration’s failure to work with House Republicans and secure the southern border is compromising the integrity of our National Parks and airports, and the safety of our communities. I will continue working with my colleagues to hold the Biden Administration accountable for their broken border policies.” BACKGROUND:
  • On September 27, Congressman Bruce Westerman chaired a House Natural Resources Committee hearing to condemn the Biden Administration’s use of National Park Service (NPS) lands for illegal migrant housing.
  •      The Biden Administration failed to send any witnesses to testify and defend      their decision to turn units of NPS into migrant camps. 
  • Westerman visited the NPS Gateway National Recreation Area in September, specifically Floyd Bennett Field, a site where New York City signed a lease agreement to permit the construction of a migrant encampment.
  • In the November 7 letter to Secretary Buttigieg, the Members cited reports that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposed housing for 60,000 migrants at four public airports and other facilities in New York and New Jersey, as has been done at Chicago O’Hare International Airport.
  • Since President Biden took office, there have been over 6.2 million illegal crossings at our southern border alone.
  • In Fiscal Year 2023 alone, border patrol seized over 27,000 pounds of fentanyl, and more than 169 people whose names appeared on the terror watchlist were stopped trying to cross the border – an all time record.

Click here to view the full letter.

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