States Sue To Block New Biden Border Rule

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Attorneys general in eighteen states – including three key early-voting presidential states – have filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) over a recently adopted rule which they say would “further degrade our nation’s border security and make it even easier to illegally immigrate into the United States.”

The so-called “circumvention rule” – adopted by DHS on May 11, 2023 – attempts to re-characterize illegal crossings as “lawful pathways,” according to the lawsuit. The attorneys general challenging the rule say it marks the latest attempt by the administration of Joe Biden to impose “reckless open borders policies.”

The new Biden rule purports to “address the current and anticipated surge in migration throughout the hemisphere and further discourage irregular migration by encouraging migrants to use lawful, safe, and orderly processes for entering the United States.” It also claims to impose “conditions on asylum eligibility for those who fail” to follow such lawful processes, while “supporting the swift return of migrants who do not have valid protection claims.”

Attorneys general from all across the country – including the pivotal presidential states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina – aren’t buying what DHS is selling, though. According to them, the new rule is “unlawful and would allow vast numbers of aliens to enter the country.”

Such an influx “violates each state’s sovereign and qausi-sovereign interest in its territory and the welfare of its citizens … (and) will also cost the states millions,” their lawsuit (.pdf) asserted.

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“The circumvention Rule is some combination of a half-measure and a smoke screen,” the lawsuit noted. “It is riddled with exceptions, and it is part of the Biden administration’s broader effort to obfuscate the true situation at the southwest border.”

“The Biden Administration has made it clear it doesn’t care about securing the southern border and that it will ignore the rule of law to keep it open,” South Carolina attorney Alan Wilson said in a statement accompanying the filing of the lawsuit. “The latest rule rewards those making false asylum claims by granting them entry into our country. This is not the first time the Biden Administration has taken matters into its own hands to change a law passed by Congress. I don’t anticipate it being the last time, but we’ll be ready to defend the rule of law and secure our border because in Joe Biden’s America, every state is a border state.”

“President Biden is turning the border crisis into chaos,” Iowa attorney general Brenna Bird added. “This open border rule turns every state into a border state. It strains our already-overburdened border security and invites an increase of illegal drugs, crime, and human trafficking into our communities. We must take urgent action to secure our border and keep the Biden Administration in check.”

The lawsuit was filed on May 31, 2023 in North Dakota. It names DHS and its secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas, among its lengthy list of federal defendants.

According to the suit, South Carolina has approximately 157,000 illegal immigrants costing taxpayers $746 million annually in “education programs, state medical costs, incarceration of illegal aliens who commit crimes and welfare programs.”

(Click to View)

“These expenses to the State of South Carolina will increase significantly with the influx of aliens resulting from the circumvention rule,” the lawsuit alleged.

New Hampshire has between 11,000 and 19,000 illegal aliens, according to the pleading – costing the state an estimated $107.5 million annually. Updated data for Iowa was not available, however the lawsuit estimated the state spent $150 million annually on its illegal alien population. The Hawkeye state also spends “tens of millions of dollars each year for increased law enforcement, while its citizens suffer increased crime, unemployment, environmental harm, and social disorder, due to illegal immigration.”

“Iowa has been identified as a hot spot for trafficking activity due to the junction of Interstate 35 and Interstate 80,” the lawsuit added. “Traffickers bring illegal immigrants to and through the state.”

The multi-state lawsuit caps a huge week for immigration news – which, as fate would have it, corresponded with my trip to the U.S.-Mexican border with special projects director Dylan Nolan as part of a multi-state delegation. Earlier this week, our news outlet reported on the impending resignation of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) chief Raul Ortiz and just yesterday we reported on South Carolina governor Henry McMaster‘s decision to dispatch S.C. National Guard troops to Texas to “help hold the line on the southern border.”

Dylan and I received a metric ton of information on our trip to the border, and will be featuring the first round of footage and interviews in a special upcoming edition of our ‘Week in Review‘ program. As I noted yesterday, stay tuned for much more on this issue in the days, weeks and months to come …

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THE LAWSUIT ...

(Via: U.S. District Court)

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR ...

Will Folks is the founding editor of the news outlet you are currently reading. Prior to founding FITSNews, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and seven children.

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