Our government is bringing in hordes of foreigners by hook or by crook, and nothing in this Mexico City summit looks like it will change that.
In the waning days of 2023, a delegation of high-ranking Biden administration officials traveled to Mexico to chat with Mexican leaders.
Does this indicate a real change in policy?
Or is it just a sign that, for political purposes, the Biden admin wants to appear to care about border security?
After all, there’s a presidential election coming up.
Adam Isaacson, director of defense oversight at WOLA (the Washington Office on Latin America) said Biden “is definitely hoping that Mexico will do something that pushes the numbers down for a few months at least.”
The meeting was held on December 27 in Mexico City. The U.S. delegation included Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, White House Homeland Security Advisor Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall, U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar, and National Security Council Coordinator for the Los Angeles Declaration Katie Tobin.
They met with Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, known by the initials AMLO, and other Mexican officials.
The U.S.-Mexico partnership is crucial to prosperity and security in our countries and throughout the Americas. Good to discuss these issues, and our shared efforts to reduce irregular migration, with @lopezobrador_ today in Mexico City. pic.twitter.com/uNdEq8QMAh
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) December 27, 2023
What was actually accomplished?
Well, the next day a joint communique was released, declaring, “The two countries reaffirmed their existing commitments on fostering an orderly, humane, and regular migration. This includes reinforcing our partnership to address the root causes of migration, such as poverty, inequality, democratic decline, and violence, and for the two countries’ initiative for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans.”
Curiously, that part about “democratic decline” was in the U.S. version but not the Mexican version, and it was soon deleted from the U.S. version.
As for “root causes,” they are constantly mentioned when discussing immigration. It’s a way of excusing it.
The bottom line is they come here for the money because we let them in. There’s your “root cause.”
The communique also said, “Ongoing cooperation also includes enhanced efforts to disrupt human smuggling, trafficking, and criminal networks, and continuing the work to promote legal instead of irregular migration pathways. Also, both delegations agreed on the importance of maintaining and facilitating the vital bilateral trade at our shared border.”
As for promoting “legal instead of irregular migration pathways,” that is a justification for figuring out loopholes to bring in more migrants and calling it legal.
And check this out: The communique said the two delegations “also discussed the benefit of regularizing the situation of long-term undocumented Hispanic migrants and DACA recipients, who are a vital part of the U.S. economy and society.”
So Mexico gets a say in U.S. internal immigration policy? Great!
On December 30, the Mexican government announced that it had resumed repatriation (deportation) flights of Venezuelans. (See my previous article Mexico Suspends Deportations, Allowing Even More Invaders to Reach US)
According to the Mexican foreign ministry, two flights of deported Venezuelans departed Mexico on December 29 and 30. The Venezuelan government confirmed the arrival of 207 Venezuelans on the morning of the 30th. That’s 207 out of how many Venezuelans who have migrated to the United States?
But don’t worry, root causes are still being worked on. The Mexican foreign ministry statement reported that “Both countries (the U.S. and Mexico) are working on the implementation of social programs in Venezuela that will benefit, among others, repatriated people by linking them with productive projects and paid internships in workplaces.”
Not to be outdone, Secretary Mayorkas reported that the U.S. also sent some Venezuelans back this week.
“The U.S. continues to remove those who have no legal basis to remain back to their countries of origin, including Venezuela,” declared Mayorkas.
But notice the big loophole: “who have no legal basis to remain.”
Sure enough, Mayorkas said, “We also continue to work with our partners, including Mexico, to expand lawful pathways and coordinate enforcement measures against those who do not use them.”
Our government is bringing in hordes of foreigners by hook or by crook, and nothing in this Mexico City summit looks like it will change that.
After all, the Biden administration and the Mexican government are on the same sheet of music on the border.