A group of ex-FBI agents have banded together to warn of “imminent danger” to the United States along the southern border, implying that the nation has “been invaded” by foreign individuals of military age.
The retired officials express their concern about a current, specific threat that may be one of the most harmful ever to happen to the United States in a letter they delivered last week to House and Senate leaders.
They explain that over 302,000 migrant encounters occurred in December, following a record-breaking fiscal year of 2.4 million encounters.
Kevin Brock, Chris Swecker, Timothy Healy, Mark Morgan (former customs and border protection commissioner and former FBI superintendent), and the other ten officials are all with the FBI. Healy was the director of the Terrorist Screening Center.
Despite repeated claims by federal officials that migrants are only released after undergoing a multi-layered screening procedure, including biographical and biometric verification, lawmakers have taken note of the high numbers of migrants who have been admitted into the nation.
Notable occurrences include those involving persons on the FBI’s terror watch list and the estimated 800,000 or more people who escaped over the past fiscal year. Whoever is trying to elude the Border Patrol has the ire of FBI Director Christopher Wray.
The Biden administration has acknowledged that the issue of gotaways has persisted for decades, and it has also stated that it is currently more vigilant about the border.
The ex-officials are particularly worried after the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7.
They are concerned that some of the men coming to the border are from countries with a history of terrorism or are associated with geopolitical adversaries such as Russia or China.
The letter writers, the public, and parts of the government maintain that a “broken” system and a crisis affecting the entire hemisphere necessitate additional resources and changes. Additionally, DHS has noted that the number of illegal immigrants returning has increased, with more returning since May compared to the whole fiscal year 2019.
Border personnel, processing, removals, and assistance to municipalities and organizations would receive $14 billion as part of a supplemental spending measure now being debated in Congress.
Republicans advocate for stricter rules, secure borders, and legal immigration. It’s unclear what the Democrats want.
