Biden Immigration Policy Struck Down By Federal Judge

A federal judge in Florida ruled against the Biden administration in an immigration court case, declaring Biden responsible for turning the U.S. border into mayhem.

U.S. District Judge T. Kent Wetherell ruled that Biden’s catch-and-release policy is unlawful and he turned the U.S. Southern border into “little more than a speedbump.”

Under Biden’s watch, the United States has shattered records for the number of migrant crossings.

NBC News noted:

The number of undocumented immigrant crossings at the southwest border for fiscal year 2022 topped 2.76 million, breaking the previous annual record by more than 1 million, according to Customs and Border Protection data.

For the 12 months ending Sept. 30, 2022, CBP stopped migrants more than 2,766,582 times, compared to 1.72 million times for fiscal 2021, the previous yearly high. The 2022 numbers were driven in part by sharp increases in the number of Venezuelans, Cubans and Nicaraguans making the trek north, according to CBP.

The federal judge scorched the Biden administration in a lengthy opinion.

“The judge gave the administration seven days to comply with federal immigration law,” The Florida Standard reports.

A judge said the Biden administration is flouting immigration law by authorizing the release of migrants into the US under parole-like programs while their asylum cases are processed https://t.co/OywtQrZQ5d

— Bloomberg (@business) March 8, 2023

A federal judge in Florida agreed with the state's Republican attorney general that the policy of Joe Biden's administration to release many people who illegally cross the U.S.-Mexican border rather than detaining them violates U.S. immigration law https://t.co/PTd6YJEsX8 pic.twitter.com/Qsg7J2JF5Q

— Reuters Legal (@ReutersLegal) March 8, 2023

From The Florida Standard:

“Today’s ruling affirms what we have known all along, President Biden is responsible for the border crisis and his unlawful immigration policies make this country less safe. A federal judge is NOW ordering Biden to follow the law, and his administration should immediately begin securing the border to protect the American people,” Attorney General Ashley Moody told The Florida Standard.

The final order from Judge Wetherell of the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of Florida states:

“The Court finds in favor of Florida because, as detailed below, the evidence establishes that Defendants have effectively turned the Southwest Border into a meaningless line in the sand and little more than a speedbump for aliens flooding into the country by prioritizing ‘alternatives to detention’ over actual detention and by releasing more than a million aliens into the country – on ‘parole’ or pursuant to the exercise of ‘prosecutorial discretion’ under a wholly inapplicable statute – without even initiating removal proceedings.”

Reuters added:

U.S. District Judge T. Kent Wetherell in Pensacola blocked the administration from continuing to implement a 2021 Department of Homeland Security (DHS) memo that had authorized “alternatives to detention” to ease overcrowding in detention facilities. These alternatives included ankle bracelets, phone monitoring or check-ins by immigration officers. Republican critics have called the policy “catch and release.”

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Wetherell, appointed by Republican former President Donald Trump, said federal immigration authorities lack the power to implement those alternatives on a widespread basis under existing law. The judge agreed with the argument made by Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, who challenged the policy.

Judge Wetherell had these blistering words for the Biden administration in his final order:

“Collectively, these actions were akin to posting a flashing ‘Come In, We’re Open’ sign on the southern border. The unprecedented ‘surge’ of aliens that started arriving at the Southwest Border almost immediately after President Biden took office and that has continued unabated over the past two years was a predictable consequence of these actions.”

He also stated:

“The immigration crisis at the Southwest Border most significantly affects border states and communities, but its impacts are not limited to those areas. Florida and other states are also impacted by the border crisis because arriving aliens are being released at the border into the interior of the country in historic numbers.”

Read the full 109-page order HERE.