Opinion: Ukraine & Israel's borders over ours; why we need an asylum moratorium & militarized border

Border SecurityPhoto byBing AI

Is the U.S going to wait until hostile actors act, or should we protect our borders like we do for others?

(AI contributed to text or images in this article)

U.S Politics: The contrast between the United States' approach to border security in Ukraine and Israel, and its approach to border security on its own southern border, is particularly stark.

In the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the United States has provided Ukraine with billions of dollars in military and humanitarian assistance. This assistance has included a wide range of weapons and equipment, including anti-tank missiles, air defense systems, and artillery.

The United States has also provided Ukraine with significant training and intelligence support.

Since the war began, the Biden administration and the U.S. Congress have directed more than $75 billion in assistance to Ukraine. (Source)

The United States' support for Ukraine has been instrumental in helping it to defend itself against the Russian invasion. However, this support has come at a significant cost to the United States, both financially and potentially militarily as the Pentagon has warned Congress military stock is being depleted by Ukraine.

The US is also providing Israel with a significant amount of ongoing financial assistance that will be bolstered during the active conflict currently taking place against Hamas. The Biden administration is asking Congress for $14 billion in emergency military aid to Israel.

The US military is also playing an important role in defending Israel's borders. The US has deployed ships and aircraft to the Middle East to deter Iran and other adversaries from attacking Israel.

In contrast to its support for Ukraine and Israel's borders, the United States is failing to adequately protect its own southern border. In fiscal year 2022, the number of migrant encounters at the U.S.-Mexico border exceeded 2.3 million, the highest level in decades.

Concerns about whether known or suspected terrorists are exploiting the migration crisis along the U.S.-Mexico border to enter the country have intensified. (Source)

President Biden’s budget strengthens border security, enhances legal pathways, and provides resources to enforce our immigration laws (Source)

President Biden has repeatedly called on Congress to fix the nation's immigration laws, but when Democrats controlled both the House and Senate for the first two years of his term, they did nothing to advance major immigration reform legislation.

The asylum system in the United States is broken. It is overwhelmed by a massive backlog of cases, and it is being exploited by those who are seeking to enter the country illegally.

Opinion: Ukraine & Israel's borders over ours-why we need asylum moratorium & militarized border

In order to protect our national security and ensure that the asylum system is used fairly, we need to implement an asylum moratorium and a militarized border.

An asylum moratorium would temporarily suspend the processing of new asylum claims. This would give the government time to clear the backlog of cases and to implement reforms to the asylum system.

During the moratorium, the government would continue to process asylum claims from those who are already in the country, and from those who are fleeing persecution in countries that are designated as refugees.

A militarized border would involve deploying more troops and equipment to the border between the United States and Mexico. This would help to deter illegal immigration and to apprehend those who do attempt to cross the border illegally.

A militarized border would also help to prevent the smuggling of drugs and weapons into the United States.

According to NBC News, so far in fiscal year 2023, 160 migrants whose identities match those on the list have been stopped trying to cross the U.S.-Mexico border.

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told Congress this week 600,000 people illegally made their way into the United States without being apprehended by border agents during the 2023 fiscal year.

There is no way to know who among them might be here to do harm in this country. Is the U.S going to wait until hostile actors act, or should we protect our borders like we do for others?

Photo byLashaun Turner @MsLashaunTurner and @MsBlackPolitics on Twitter

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