Global Courant 2023-05-11 20:18:19
The Biden administration this week launched a new public messaging campaign for would-be illegal immigrants warning that “immigration laws are tougher” in the United States, even as border officials began releasing thousands of migrants across the US in line with the administration’s plan.
The Department of Homeland Security says its posts this week are intended to counter “lies being spread by smugglers” towards the end of Title 42, a COVID-19 emergency policy that allowed border agents to reject migrants at the border. The ads will run on social media in countries in the southern and central regions of the US with messages such as “ILLEGALLY BREACHING IS A CRIME”, “US immigration laws are stricter” and “GET INFORMED AND OBEY THE LAW”.
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“ILLEGAL CROSSING IS A CRIME,” the ad reads. “US immigration laws are stricter.”
However, these reports are in stark contrast to reports from Fox News that President Biden’s top officials will allow border patrol sectors, including both government and non-government facilities, to release migrants onto the streets of the US if they take their full reach capacity.
The decision was made as an estimated 10,000 migrants a day flocked to the border before the end of Title 42 Thursday. Migrants will soon be released en masse at bus stops, gas stations and cities across the border as facilities are already filling up, US Customs and Border Protection sources told Fox News.
On Thursday there were signals that thousands have already been released. Border patrol officers detained 28,000 migrants on Wednesday, but that number fell to 26,000 when some were released, according to CBP sources.
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The Biden administration launched a migrant ad campaign on Wednesday saying its “immigration laws are stricter,” but its border plan reportedly authorizes all patrol sectors to release migrants onto the city streets.
Title 42 allowed hundreds of thousands of migrants to be rejected at the border. Nearly half of the encounters with migrants in March ended in a Title 42 eviction.
The DHS ad campaign for migrants traveling to the southern border seeks to counter claims of “coyotes” attempting to smuggle migrants across the border for profit.
“The coyotes ripped us off,” reads one ad. “Entering the US illegally is a crime. Say no to the coyote.”
DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas stressed a similar message at a press conference on Wednesday.
“Smugglers only care about profit, not people. They don’t care about you or your well-being. Don’t believe their lies,” he urged migrants. “Don’t risk your life and your savings to be removed from the United States, if and when you get here.”
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President Biden visited the border once since taking office. (JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)
Mayorkas said the border is not open, but the number of allowed border encounters is expected to increase significantly.
“Even after nearly two years of preparation, we expect large numbers of encounters at our southern border in the days and weeks following May 11,” he said. “We are already seeing large numbers of encounters in certain industries. This is putting an incredible strain on our staff, our facilities and our communities with whom we work closely.”
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“The vast majority will be dealt with in our border patrol facilities and ICE detention facilities,” Mayorkas continued.
Biden told reporters Wednesday that the border will be “chaotic for a while.”
Bill Melugin, Chris Pandolfo and Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
Patrick Hauf is a political writer for Fox News Digital.
