Controlled Chaos

Biden’s response to the border crisis is more about messaging than looking for an actual policy solution.

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U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas speaks at a press conference about immigration and Title 42 on May 5, 2023 in Brownsville, Texas. (Photo by Michael Gonzalez/Getty Images)

The lifting of Title 42—which allowed the government to use the COVID pandemic to expel migrants for public health purposes—has not resulted in “chaos” at the border, according to most press accounts. Intended or not, this is a great example of managing expectations. Because President Joe Biden predicted things would be “chaotic for a while” after Title 42 expired, “chaos” at the border suddenly became the political metric to watch for, as if a monumental crisis absent chaos is no big deal.

On March 29, 2019, then-Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson commented on 4,000 apprehensions at the border that week. “I know that a thousand overwhelms the system. I cannot begin to imagine what 4,000 a day looks like, so we are truly in a crisis.” 

Last Tuesday, just before Title 42 ended, 11,000 migrants were apprehended. On Wednesday, another 11,000. On Thursday, it dropped to 10,000 and on Friday it edged down to a mere 6,200. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas claimed this as proof the Biden administration’s post-Title 42 plan was working. He told ABC News on Sunday, “Over the past two days, the United States Border Patrol has seen an approximately 50 percent drop in the number of people encountered at our southern border.”

This is typical of the larger problem. A good talking point on a news show is no substitute for a successful policy. Pan out to a more meaningful unit of time, and you can see the disaster for what it is. In fiscal year 2022, a record-breaking 2.2 million migrants were apprehended, up from 1.7 million the year before. 

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  1. Avatar photo
    Ben Connelly

    Good column. I’d love to make it easier for immigrants to get here legally, especially high-skilled/educated ones, but the situation at our border is not that. It is the worst of all worlds - neither what the pro-immigration crowd wants, nor what the anti-immigration crowd wants. And for everyone in the middle, it screams out, “Doesn’t anyone know WTF they’re doing?”

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  2. FreddySez

    "So now 'comprehensive' immigration policy has to solve all of the political, economic, and climatological crises in South America?"

    Ding ding ding - it absolutely does, because this allows Democrats to hold the entire process to an unreachable standard.

    As opposed, to, you know, exercising control over our borders the way every other sovereign nation does.

    Try sneaking into France. Try establishing permanent non-citizen residency in MEXICO without a lawyer and lots of time to kill on paperwork.

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  3. Avatar photo
    JohnD

    Thanks Jonah - Biden, a man of limited imagination and marginal competence, is clearly over his head on this one. So many of our problems (unsustainable fiscal situation, border security, immigration policy, international relations, etc) require vision, leadership, and articulate communications…three traits that no one would attribute to Biden!

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    Martin Hernandez

    Who needs a roof? It doesn’t address the root cause of rain dammit!

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    1. Avatar photo
      Rdoconnell

      Haha!!

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    BrettH

    Enjoyed the read, thanks Jonah.

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    Brownmugs

    Mr. Goldberg's opening headline may be the most understated comment, that I have ever read from him.

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  7. Avatar photo
    Cody Pogalz

    The summaries of the GOP House bill that I've read--and I've only read summaries, not the entirety of the bill--seem to be lacking a policy that I think makes sense:

    Why not deny border entry, period, to any asylum-seeker or illegal immigrant who has traveled farther to reach the border than it would've required for them to reach their nearest U.S. embassy or consulate? Why isn't it unacceptable to intentionally bypass the US embassy in Mexico City, or the consulates in Juarez, Laredo, Matamoros, Tijuana, etc., and instead proceed directly (and illegally) across the border?

    Those are serious questions, BTW: what are the legal and ethical shortcomings (or benefits) of this approach?

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  8. Mary Stine

    I'm against building any more walls due to the devastating effect on wildlife. Besides, no wall is going to stop the cartels, who have the tools and the money to just tunnel underneath, wherever . Or just fly over and land at night in a remote area of Texas or New Mexico or Florida. More walls are a gross waste of money . The border patrol agents will plead that walls at least slow things down, but there are better ways to do that.
    We should be slowing down immigration long before people are desperate enough to migrate. The US has bungled too many times in Central and South America, starting with failing to pursue Nazi War Criminals and thereby leaving poor countries vulnerable to atrocities and authoritarians. Don't get me started on Nicaragua or the many places we backed oil exploration that required aid from cartels.
    The least we can do now is try to help our Central and South American and Mexican neighbors survive in their own countries, or help them to escape to a better area from which to appeal for asylum. Where is the Peace Corp right now? do we need an enhanced version for today?
    We need to remember the US has signed pacts agreeing to take refugees from numerous war torn places. Not honoring those agreements lessen us in the eyes of the world and gives our enemies an opening to call us hypocrites.
    We need to hire enough judges, facility staff and border agents to actually handle this situation professionally.
    and thereby make a statement to the world that we are capable and compassionate about maintaining our national security.
    And we need to build more holding facilities ASAP, with some where the wall was considered.
    Immigrants are not the root of the problem..immigration IS the history of mankind.
    Our refusal to deal with immigration in our time according to our Constitution..that is the problem.

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  9. MathewA

    1. Build the wall
    2. Fix and mandate e-verify
    3. Hire enough judges and build enough holding facilities that you can process claims within days or years. End catch and release

    AFTER all of that and when the nation can now see we have control over our borders and who comes in. THEN look at a path to citizenship for the dreamers

    Also, anyone that comes to learn at American colleges, give them a chance to say.

    And also look at company needs. Probably will need more high skilled immigration, and maybe even more low skilled immigration. But we need to be able to say who and how many.

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    1. Jaybrown

      I think your latter point is already pretty well in hand. Many companies are pressing for increasing, even doubling, the HIB visa program. Lots of stories out there of prospective employees being recruited and by the time an offer is made and accepted, the quota has run out.

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  10. Harbage6179

    I heard the crack of the bat and am checking the exit velocity on statcast.

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