February 13, 2024

Developments

The U.S. Senate passed a supplemental appropriation with foreign aid for Ukraine and Israel. This is the bill that once had Senate negotiators’ “border deal” attached to it, with new limits on the right to seek asylum at the border. The bill that cleared the Senate last night has no border content, neither new funds nor new migration limits.

Karoun Demirjian, “Senate Passes Aid to Ukraine, but Fate Is Uncertain in a Hostile House” (The New York Times, February 12, 2024).

The bill now goes to the Republican-majority House of Representatives, where Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) stated that he does not intend to bring it up for debate because it lacks any new border or migration restrictions.

Morgan Chalfant, “Senate Approves Billions in Funding for Ukraine, Israel” (Semafor, February 13, 2024).
Liz Goodwin, “Senate Passes $95 Billion Ukraine, Israel Aid Package Amid Gop Divide” (The Washington Post, February 12, 2024).

In a colorful tweet, the Democrats’ chief Senate negotiator, Chris Murphy (D-Connecticut) voiced exasperation about a new demand for border language after Senate Republicans’ “no” votes defeated the negotiators’ earlier language, for which Democrats had conceded some deep restrictions on migrant protections.

“Chris Murphy @Chrismurphyct on Twitter” (Twitter, February 12, 2024).

Analysts note that Ukraine aid supporters in both parties might force the bill’s consideration in the House, over the Speaker’s objections, if more than half of representatives sponsor a “discharge petition.” If it happens, an eventual House debate might involve amendments limiting asylum and other migration pathways.

Andrew Desiderio, Jake Sherman, “Senate on the Verge, Republicans Are at War” (Punchbowl News, February 13, 2024).

The removal of border funding from the supplemental appropriations bill could leave the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) with insufficient funds to manage a moment of historically high migration at the border, NBC News reported. Grants to cities receiving asylum seekers could dry up.

Julia Ainsley, “With the Border Deal Dead, the Money for Border Security Might Run Out. Here’s What That Would Mean.” (NBC News, February 13, 2024).

More Americans blame Joe Biden (49 percent) than Donald Trump (39 percent) for last week’s “border deal” failure in the Senate, according to an ABC News-Ipsos survey. Biden supported the deal while Trump actively worked to sink it.

Greg Sargent, “An Infuriating Poll Finding About Trump Should Galvanize Democrats” (The New Republic, February 13, 2024).
Philip Bump, “Biden’s Border Bind, in One Chart” (The Washington Post, February 12, 2024).

CBS News revealed that the CBP One app has been used 64.3 million times by people inside Mexico seeking to secure one of 1,450 daily appointments at U.S.-Mexico border ports of entry. CBP launched the app’s appointment-making feature in January 2023. This obviously does not mean that 64.3 million people have sought to migrate: it reflects numerous repeat attempts.

Camilo Montoya-Galvez, “Migrants in Mexico Have Used Cbp One App 64 Million Times to Request Entry Into U.S.” (CBS News, February 12, 2024).

With Rep. Steve Scalise (R-Louisiana) back from receiving cancer treatments, the House of Representatives may vote again today to impeach DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. House Republicans seek to make the case that Mayorkas is mismanaging the border and that this constitutes “high crimes and misdemeanors.” A vote to impeach last Wednesday failed by a 214-216 margin. If the House impeaches Mayorkas, there is no chance that the Democratic-majority Senate would muster the two-thirds vote necessary to convict him.

Jake Sherman, Mica Soellner, “The House Has a Bumpy Week Ahead” (Punchbowl News, February 13, 2024).

During winter-weather conditions near Sásabe, Arizona, humanitarian volunteers evacuated some of a group of about 400 migrants waiting to turn themselves in to Border Patrol near the border wall, bringing them to the nearby Border Patrol station for processing. Some reported that agents threatened them with arrest for smuggling undocumented people.

Emily Bregel, “Aid Workers Threatened With Arrest for Evacuating Migrants Left in Cold” (The Arizona Daily Star, February 12, 2024).

At the Kino Border Initiative’s shelter in Nogales, most migrants—many of them families with small children—are now from southern Mexico, especially the embattled state of Guerrero. 83 percent now say they are fleeing violence, a much larger share than before, reported Arizona Public Media.

Danyelle Khmara, “Mexican Families Fleeing Violence Grows Exponentially in Tucson Sector” (Arizona Public Media, February 12, 2024).

The government of Honduras registered 38,495 migrants transiting its territory in January. Most were from Venezuela, Cuba, Haiti, Ecuador, and Guinea. Of migrants transiting Honduras surveyed by UNHCR, at least 30 percent “reported having international protection needs because they had to flee their country of origin due to violence or persecution.” 38 percent reported suffering “some form of mistreatment or abuse during their journey,” though infrequently in Honduras.

“Honduras – Mixed Movements Protection Monitoring – January 2024” (UN Refugee Agency, February 12, 2024).

Analyses and Feature Stories

Axios published a gossip-heavy account of Biden administration infighting, name-calling, and a “winding” and “irritable” President, as officials responded ineffectively to increased migration at the border. “The idea that no one wanted to ‘own it’ came up repeatedly in interviews about the border crisis.”

Alex Thompson, Stef W. Kight, “How Biden Botched the Border” (Axios, February 12, 2024).

“It appears that in most cases, it takes about $5,000 to travel to the U.S. border” for Chinese migrants arriving in Jacumba Springs, California, reported Japan-based Nikkei Asia. “Affluent Chinese would not choose to take such a difficult journey” via the Darién Gap, it noted. “Ordinary people are the ones who take on this danger.”

Masahiro Okoshi, “Chinese Migrants Flock to U.S. Border, Driven by Economic Pressures” (Nikkei Aisia, February 13, 2024).

Talking to residents of El Paso, USA Today’s Lauren Villagrán found that a pledge to “shut down the border” means “something different to those who live on the border than to politicians nearly 2,000 miles away in Washington, D.C.”

Lauren Villagran, “Border Life Goes on Despite Bill Failure and Threat to ‘Shut It Down.’” (USA Today, February 13, 2024).

The Washington Examiner posited a connection between Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s (R) crackdown on migration and a recent drop in the border-wide share of asylum seekers and other migrants crossing into Texas.