Central ND News

Senator John Hoeven today criticized the Biden administration's approach to border security, arguing that an executive order issued by President Biden lacks effective policies and contains broad exceptions that fail to address illegal immigration, drug trafficking, and human trafficking. Hoeven emphasized the need for more stringent enforcement measures.

“When President Biden came into office, he issued 70 executive orders on the border and immigration, with more than 10 million people entering the U.S. illegally during his tenure. Now, five months before the election, he is going to issue one executive order that is supposedly going to secure the border, except it doesn’t,” said Hoeven. “How bad does it have to get before we look through the rhetoric and lip service, and finally secure the border? All President Biden has to do is enforce the law and reinstate and enforce the Remain in Mexico Policy and Third Safe Country Agreements.”

Illegal encounters at the southern border have reached record numbers, rising from 1.7 million in Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 to over 2.4 million in FY2023, with more than 1.5 million illegal encounters already occurring in FY2024. Additionally, 169 individuals on the terror watchlist were apprehended attempting to cross the southern border illegally in FY23, followed by 80 such apprehensions so far in FY2024.

In response to these developments, Hoeven has been actively highlighting what he describes as an illegal immigration crisis and opposing President Biden’s policies. He has met with North Dakota National Guard members stationed in Del Rio, Eagle Pass, and El Paso, Texas, to underscore their roles supporting Customs and Border Protection operations. The senator has also reviewed border operations in Rio Grande Valley and Brownsville, Texas. Furthermore, he traveled with a bipartisan congressional delegation to Mexico, Ecuador, Colombia, and Guatemala to discuss collaboration with these nations on stopping illegal immigration and preventing human and drug trafficking.