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National Border Patrol Council President Brandon Judd and Congresswoman Kat Cammack

BY JENNIFER CABRERA

GAINESVILLE, Fla. Yesterday, Congresswoman Kat Cammack brought Brandon Judd, President of the National Border Patrol Council, to speak at Big Daddy Unlimited about the situation on the southwestern border. In her introduction, Cammack said polling shows that the border is one of the top three important issues to residents of her district. Cammack added, This isnt just a Texas issue; its not just an Arizona, New Mexico, California issue; this is an everyday American issue Its absurd what is happening on our own border. We have every opportunity, every means to secure that border, and yet here we are: its more porous than it ever has been.

Cammack sits on the Homeland Security Committee, which she says has full jurisdiction over the border, but Republicans are in the minority, and she said the Committee Chair, Bennie Thompson, wont pick up any legislation on the border.

Crisis has public health, humanitarian, and national security implications

Cammack highlighted the public health aspect of the large numbers of people coming across the southern border, including COVID-19, record levels of tuberculosis, and fentanyl: You have all of these drugs coming across the border, and no one on the left wants to talk about it. Yet theyre landing in our community. Were going to talk a lot about the fentanyl landing here in Gainesville today. We know for a fact that its coming from the southwest border. Cammack says that local law enforcement has seen cartel stamps on pills and bricks, and we report it back up, and just kind of crickets.

She also spoke about the humanitarian aspect of the border crisis, with women and children being trafficked and raped. She said her colleagues on the left also dont want to talk about whats happening to the children who are coming across the border.

And third, she spoke about the national security aspect, which is really one of the only fundamental roles of the federal government. But this administration has failed, majestically. Cammack said that just this year, 66 individuals on the international terror watch list have been apprehended, and that doesnt even include the got-aways that have been seen on drones or cameras but not apprehended. She added that apprehension just means released into the United States. So when you hear about 3 million-plus apprehension, thats not, Ok, we caught you, and then we turned you around. No. Thats We caught you and welcome to the United States.

Cammack also said she has documentation from FEMA that money set aside for homeless veterans and veterans at risk for homelessness was spent instead on buying bus tickets and plane tickets for illegal aliens: This is a crisis of epic proportions, and I dont care if youre Republican or Democrat or independent. This is an issue that impacts every single one of us, it impacts our community, it impacts our nation, our community, and our kids future. Thats why we all have to be all-hands-on-deck. You all have a role to play in this because whats happening at the southwest border is impacting us here.

Cammack then introduced Brandon Judd, President of the National Border Patrol Council, who has served as a Border Patrol agent for 25 years. He said that whats going on at the border is not humane It is not humane that weve had 700 deaths on the border to date, in this year. Judd said the previous record was a little over 300 deaths; that record was broken last year with 500 deaths, and this year were already at 700.

96% of dangerous drugs come across the southwest border

Judd continued, We are allowing criminal cartels, organized crime, to dictate what the program, policies, and operations are on the border today. There are stretches of border that the criminal cartels literally own because they know that all they have to do is flood it with large numbers of illegal immigrants [that] causes the Border Patrol to send resources to that area and take those individuals into custody, take them back to the station to process them The cartels know thats what they need to do, and when they control those areas of the border, thats when they get their higher-value products across. Thats when the drugs come in fentanyl, by the way, we set a record in 2021 with overdose deaths here in the United Statesover 100,000 United States citizens died because of dangerous drugs. And the DEA will tell you that 96% of those drugs are coming from the southwest border.

Judd said that at any given time, 90% of Border Patrol agents are performing administrative duties; only about 10% are patrolling. He said theyve never seen large groups like the ones theyre seeing now; it used to be that a group of 100 was a massive group, but now they see groups of 500 people at a time crossing the border.

Judd: Solution is to hold people in custody, hire more temporary judges to process them

Judd said the crisis can largely be solved with policy: hire more immigration judges on a temporary basis, then hold people in custody pending their asylum or deportation proceedings, and people will stop coming. He said that the moment you start holding people in custody, and this has been proven time and time and time again, they stop coming. Judd said people dont have the money to give to the cartels, so they have to enter into indentured servitude when they arrive here to pay back the cost of passage across the border. He said, Thats not humane. Whats humane is the rule of law.

Cammack passed around wristbands that she found on the border; she said they can be found in piles there. Each wristband signifies a different cartel, and each person crossing the border gets a numbered wristband from the cartel that is providing their passage. She said, This is a reminder of the fact that the cartels do not think of people as people; they treat them like cattle.

Q&A

Cammack and Judd then took questions that the audience had submitted on index cards before the event started.

The first question was, Do Democrats want to legitimize the illegals to give them the right to vote?

Judd said that Democrats continually push comprehensive immigration reform, which would legalize the people who are already here and give them legal status after some waiting period. Yes, the Democrats do continue to push for immigration reform or an amnesty pathway to citizenship for the millions of people who are here illegally.

Cammack added that in the current Congress, one of the Democrats top priorities is a bill that lowers the voting age to 16, makes it illegal for states to enforce Voter ID, and publicly finances campaigns with a six-to-one match on small-dollar donations of $200 or less, meaning that whatever a candidate raises in that category, the federal government would give them six times that amount. She said the bill would also allow non-citizens to vote. She added, I think there is something to be said about the fact that they have pushed for doing away with Voter ID and have done away with the notion that you have to be a citizen to vote in New York City.

Cammack added, And thats all the more reason why we as conservatives have to take back the House to stop this nonsense. We can only do that if were united. That is the only way we can do it, is if we are one team, one mission, and the mission is to secure the dang border.

The second question was, As a Constitutional Conservative, at what point does the federal government failing to enforce the border violate Article IV, Section 4, shall protect against invasion?

Cammack responded, I think its already been violated I think Article IV was abandoned quite a long time ago because weve seen states like Texas that are now having to build their own border wall to protect their citizens and talk about what Arizona is dealing with at the state level.

Judd said theres a debate right now about whether the framers of the Constitution meant an invading force in that Article and what constitutes an invading force. Judd says he believes cartels are an invading force: Every single person that crosses that border illegally, every single one of them that comes across is facilitated by the cartels. He added that China is now involved in the drug trafficking because all the precursors for fentanyl come from China, then its manufactured in Mexico.

Cammack added that NORTHCOM has concluded that 40% of Mexican territory is under the control of the cartels.

Judd said the first step in fighting back against the cartels is to control illegal immigration: Remember, this is not a legal immigration debate. This is about illegal immigration. We are the most compassionate country in the world. We take in more legal immigrants than any other country, on average, per year.

Another question was, Will Republicans eliminate the 87,000 new IRS positions?

Cammack responded, Hell, yeah, were gonna get rid of the 87,000 IRS agents. They have no business being around.

The final question was, Does Republican leadership have a plan for 2023? If not, will you support someone other than [Kevin] McCarthy to be Speaker?

Cammack responded, So yes, we have a plan, and actually theres four major pillars to the plan, and actually everybodys been rolling out talking about it. There is a plan to support the securing of the border Regarding leadership, there is no one else running other than McCarthy. Jim Jordan is supporting Kevin McCarthy for Speaker. There are no alternatives. So there is really not much else to say on that.

Cammack added that Republicans are naturally independent thinkers and dont hang together like the Democrats. They are tough as a unit. They are one team, one mission, and thats why theyve been successful in sliding and pulling this country to the left towards socialism.

Cammack said that Republicans had an opportunity in 2017, but they had internal fighting, and we fought amongst ourselves and we lost America. We need to learn our lessons, and we need one team, one mission We have got to stop eating each other alive. Weve got to stop fighting one another If we agree on 85%, 90%, 95% of the big-ticket items, we can do some amazing things and take this country back.

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Congresswoman Kat Cammack at Every Town is a Border Town event: "The mission is to secure the dang border. - Alachua Chronicle

Record-high inflation has wreaked havoc on an economy already struggling to recover from COVID-19. The Federal Reserve is aggressively hiking interest rates, but its too little, too late. When too much money chases too few goods, rising prices are inevitable. Since the start of the pandemic, the monetary base has risen 60 percent and the M2 money supply 40 percent, outpacing the uncertainty-induced spike in liquidity demand. If we want to tame inflation, we need to stop running the printing presses. But we also need bold supply-side reforms.

Its time to liberalize immigration policy. Making it easier for people to come here and work increases the availability of labor. That would boost the goods supply relative to the money supply. While its not a panacea, immigration can ease pricing pressures. Making green cards, visas and even citizenship easier to obtain makes economic sense, and it offers humanitarian benefits as well.

In the long run, living standards depend on supply-side factors. These include the amount of labor and capital, technological progress and a supportive regulatory environment. The White House, Congress and the Federal Reserve have focused too much on the demand side. While demand stimulus can temporarily cushion falling incomes and wealth, it isnt sustainable. Policymakers quickly run into the fundamental constraint: how much the economy can produce.

Augmenting demand leads to higher prices, but augmenting supply leads to lower prices. The secret to broad-based prosperity is making goods and services more abundant, and therefore cheaper. Supply-side economics isnt fundamentally about tax cuts, and theres no reason conservatives should have a monopoly on it. Liberals can profit from this agenda, too. Immigration reform is the place to start.

Many people worry that increased immigration will lower current workers wages, already eroding because of inflation. While its true prices are rising faster than wages, immigration wont make things worse. In fact, it could make things better.Most studies find no effect on wages for current workers. Some find wages increasing as a result of immigration. After all, immigrant labor complements existing domestic labor, raising everyones productivity. When productivity goes up, so do wages.

If more immigration wont lower wages, and might even raise them, how can it help whip inflation? Material abundance is the key. Wages are an important price the price of rented labor but still just one price. Curbing inflation means slowing down price growth across the whole economy. If liberalizing immigration policy results in a temporary surge of workers, that will stabilize the bottom-out point of dollar depreciation. We could even get a durable inflation slowdown if the worker boost is long-lived, buttressing productivity over many years. Whether we get a one-time benefit or a flow of benefits depends on immigrants decisions to live and work here. Either result is welcome. With prices rising 9 percent per year, we shouldnt be picky.

Despite falling production and rising prices, the unemployment rate is still very low at about 3.6 percent. Employers consistently report having great difficulty finding workers to fill vacant openings.The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that in May, there were 11.25 million job openings and a total of 5.95 million people unemployed. There are almost 1.9 job openings for every unemployed person, up from 1.7 in March, when Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell described labor markets as tight to an unhealthy level. Burnout afflicts many workers. Streamlining the immigration process so that new workers could quickly fill vacancies would reduce the degree to which current laborers are overworked.

Finally, increased immigration comes with humanitarian benefits. Many millions of intelligent, hardworking people around the world are struggling to make ends meet under oppressive regimes and severely dysfunctional economies. In fact, as Branko Milanovic describes, over 80 percent of global income inequality is determined by a persons country of origin.Granting these people easier access to American labor markets would remove them from the immediate dangers they face while also alleviating extreme poverty. Apart from economic considerations, basic human dignity impels us to welcome those seeking better lives.

Handing out green pieces of paper can make us wealthier, so long as theyre permanent resident cards and not dollars. Taming inflation means giving supply every possible chance to outpace demand. If were serious about restoring an inclusive and prosperous economy, we should welcome more immigrants.

David James Hebert is an associate professor at Aquinas College. Alexander William Salter is an associate professor in the Rawls College of Business at Texas Tech University, a research fellow at TTUs Free Market Institut, and a senior fellow at AIERs Sound Money Project.

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Immigration reform is the supply-side liberalism we need - The Hill

Democrats are preparing for a series of difficult votes on anti-immigration amendments likely to be offered by Republicans during the next step of the budget reconciliation process, which Democrats are using to pass the climate, health care, and inflation bill.

Budget reconciliation can be used in some situations to pass a budget, along with other policy changes or provisions, with a simple 50-vote majority in the Senate rather than the 60-vote majority normally required. The reconciliation process requires a series of procedural steps, including review by the Senate parliamentarian to make sure the bill complies with Senate rules, and a step known as vote-a-rama, during which Senators can offer a virtually unlimited number of amendments to the bill.

Senator Joe Manchin, D-W.Va and Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., reached an unexpected deal on the climate and inflation bill last week, which Democrats hope to pass through the reconciliation process to avoid a Republican filibuster. The final Democratic holdout, Senator Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., agreed to a revised version of Manchins bill Thursday night.

With the vote-a-rama scheduled for Saturday, Republican senators intend to force vulnerable, moderate Democrats to take votes on divisive immigration topics, such as attempting to codify Title 42 or restart former President Donald Trumps border wall.

Some Democrats fear that if Republicans can force votes on these poison pill amendments to the package particularly on immigration it could divide Democrats and possibly put the entire bill in jeopardy. Democratic Senators facing tough reelection campaigns, like Senators Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., or Catherine Cortez Masto, D.-Nev., might feel pressure to vote for the amendments to keep their seats.

Others who might vote for the possible amendments include Senators Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz. All these Senators are co-sponsors of a bill that would make Title 42 permanent. Since the Senate is evenly divided, Democrats cannot afford to lose any votes.

Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., a long-time champion for immigration reform, warned Democrats against voting for Republican amendments on issues such as immigration that could threaten the overall reconciliation legislation. Adoption of amendments that would end access to asylum or expand Trumps border wall will not repair our broken immigration and will put reconciliation at risk, Menendez tweeted on Monday.

Of course, the passage of any of these anti-immigration amendments would also be a bad outcome by further dismantling the already decimated asylum system, further militarizing the southwestern border, and generally further damaging the immigration system.

There are no procedural measures to prevent the vote-a-rama, which could take place as soon as this weekend. Its not yet clear how Senate Democrats will respond, though they expect to work through the weekend and potentially delay the August recess.

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Climate and Health Bill Could Contain Immigration Poison Pills - Boundless

The Biden administration has created an unprecedented border crisis affecting our entire nation. This has galvanized public opposition, creating a united front of state and local governments, former immigration officials, and public interest groups demanding that the administration stop its sabotage of border and interior immigration enforcement.

Thankfully, Republican leadership has answered this growing chorus, releasing a border security framework for day one of the Republican-led House, assuming the GOP wins control in the November elections. The framework represents a comprehensive plan to bring our borders under control, end abuse of the asylum system, curb abuse of executive authority, and address the growing threats of fentanyl, crime and terrorism crossing our borders. The framework also categorically rejects the idea of amnesty for illegal aliens.

Barring an epic rebound from the Biden administration on numerous fronts over the next three months, it appears almost certain that voters will place the GOP in a position to make good on these promises. Republicans are likely to regain control of not only the House but possibly the Senate as well. For decades, Republican lawmakers talked a good game but legislated timidly when it came to border and interior enforcement. However, the recent GOP framework constitutes a written promissory note to the American public that will come due on Jan. 3, 2023.

House Republican leadership promises the legislation will be ready to go on the first day of the 118th Congress. It would include many obvious fixes to the border crisis. It would mandate completion of the border wall, which the Biden administration now concedes is both effective at controlling illegal immigration and essential to the Democratic Partys efforts to save Sen. Mark Kellys Arizona seat.

The promised legislation would include measures that have proven to be effective at deterring illegal migration deterrence being the most humane way of regaining control of lawlessness at the southern border. Reinstatement of Migrant Protection Protocols, an expansion of Title 42, reform of our asylum system, and imposition of mandatory E-Verify make it clear that crossing our borders illegally no longer will be rewarded with a bus or plane ticket to your preferred destination within the United States, as the Biden administration has been doing.

Equally as important, the framework pledges to rein in the Biden administrations exercise of what amounts to retroactive veto power over immigration laws. Through President Bidens executive orders and policy memoranda issued by Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, the administration essentially has nullified nearly every immigration statute signed into law by previous administrations, including many for which Biden voted during his decades in the Senate.

A Republican-controlled Congress or House, at least cant force Biden to sign a border security bill he doesnt like. But they would have the power to hold him and his political appointees accountable for their refusal to carry out immigration laws on the books, including impeachment of officials who do not uphold their sworn oaths of office.

No longer would Mayorkas be able to come before a Congressional committee and assert, under oath, that our borders are secure while a quarter-million people are breaching them every month. And, with the power of the purse, the 118th Congress could prevent funds designated for immigration enforcement from being co-opted for schemes such as handing illegal aliens newly-minted ID cards in lieu of statutorily mandated detention.

Until recently, both parties routinely promised to secure our borders and enforce immigration laws, only to forget those promises as soon as Election Day was in the rearview mirror. That is why our coalition and American voters will be there, come January, to make sure that the new congressional leadership makes good on its commitments.

Perhaps, ironically, the utter disaster wrought by the Biden administrations handling of the border, and our immigration system overall, will finally give Republicans the political fortitude to act decisively. The American public has gotten a taste of what its like to live in a nation without borders and they dont like it. Its time to deliver for them.

Dan Stein is the president of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR).

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House GOP immigration framework would be a promising start - The Hill

Even as the latestbusload of migrantsfrom Texas arrived in D.C. late Tuesday night with a total of at least 5,100 migrants and leaders like theMayor of New Yorkand theMayor of DCcomplain about the influx of immigrants in their cities, the Biden administration does not seem to find its footing on the issue of immigration.

Recently, immigration advocatesmet with the Biden administrationat the White House, urging immigration reform. After undoing many of the security measures implemented by the previous administration, they backtracked. Consequently, according to the Biden administration, they have now authorized the closing of the gaps at the border wall at the Morelos Dam in Arizona.

During a time when hot-button Supreme Court rulings and fears of economic recession dominate political debate, immigration remains a top issue among many U.S. voters. But rather than doing something simply to appease political allies, the Biden White House, and all U.S. leaders, should address the core of our immigration crisis.

The United States is facing an immigration crisis for two major reasons: the rampant corruption in neighboring Latin American countries and failed U.S. immigration policies. First, consider Latin America today. People dont leave prosperity. The reason people immigrate from countries in the region is that they are plagued by violence and poverty as a result of corruption.

Even though many Latin American countries recognize the importance of a capitalist market for progress, fraud and corruption stand in the way of prosperity for the people. Corrupt governments become oligarchies, which, in some cases, end up becoming dictatorships.

The economic situation in Latin America is a direct consequence of corruption. These circumstances are difficult for economic empowerment, especially for women. According to the UNEconomic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, women make up a larger percentage of poor households. In 2019, for every 100 men living in poverty in Latin America, there were 112.7 women in poverty. The UN report says, This shows the lack of economic autonomy of women.

Latin American poverty cant easily be solved by foreign aid dollars: The United States has long been a major contributor of foreign assistance to countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. BetweenFY1946 and FY2019, the United States provided $93.8 billion ($194.5 billion in constant 2019 dollars)of assistance to the region. But if these governments dont eradicate their own issues of corruption, all the humanitarian aid will end up in corrupt hands and not in the hands of those who need it.

Ultimately, the best way the U.S. can address immigration is through more effective measures to protect its borders.We receive approximately 1 million migrantsfrom around the world every year in our country. We are by far the most generous country in the world. Most of the migrants that come through the southern U.S. border come from Latin America, and they claim they are searching for a better life.

In addition, if the U.S. does not project a strong position when it comes to enforcing our immigration laws, other countries in the region will not collaborate to stop the crisis. We need stronger leadership throughout the world, so that when the U.S. calls, others answer.

Regrettably, many immigrants crossing the border do not pursue legal avenues, which leads to fatal consequences. According to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), there were 239,416 illegal encounters along the U.S. southwest border as of May. In the month of June, a semi-truck filled with migrants was found by authorities in San Antonio. Of the migrants,53 died due to asphyxia, and 17 were hospitalized. Border security is needed if we want to avoid these devastating events.

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Biden Should Address the Immigration Crisis at Its Core - Independent Women's Forum