North Austin News

WASHINGTON – U.S. Congressman Michael McCaul (R-Texas) delivered the following remarks at today's Committee on Homeland Security hearing examining Secretary Mayorkas’ dereliction of duty.

Click to watch Rep. McCaul's remarks

Remarks as delivered

Rep. McCaul: “Thank you, Mr. Chairman. You know, I served as chairman of this committee for three terms, now Foreign Affairs Committee. … And I was a federal prosecutor charged with prosecutions at the border.

“Political asylum is always the magnet, and it has been abused by the cartels for many years. Eighty-five percent of these claims are not legit; only 15 percent are.

“It’s very simple: When [illegal immigrants] are allowed to enter the United States, because we don’t have detention space, they are released into our society. They’re given a notice to appear, and they disappear. And I’ve seen this for 20 years in Congress. In fact, my first bill was to end catch and release, and here we are today with the same program.

“The Trump administration, through Secretary Wolf and Mr. Edlow, implemented what I thought was a very effective plan called the Migrant Protection Protocols [or] Remain in Mexico.

“[Immigrants] had to remain in Mexico, pending their adjudication. If [their claim] was legitimate, they were allowed in. If not, they were not allowed into the country. And it brought the numbers down dramatically.

“So what happened when the Biden administration gets into power? Nearly on day one, Secretary Mayorkas rescinds the order — rescinds Migrant Protection Protocols [or] Remain in Mexico — and what has happened since then? Nearly 100,000 young people died in this country due to fentanyl. Enough has been seized to kill billions of people. Five million [migrant] encounters; nearly 100 on the terror watchlist. …

“There was a court order to force the administration to reimplement MPP. That court order, in my view, has not been fully complied with by this administration. ...

“The cartels now are in operation control. When I was down at the border after the rescission of MPP, I asked the chief of border patrol, Mr. Ortiz, ‘Is there a direct cause and effect between the rescission of this program and what we’re seeing at the border totally [in] chaos?’

“He told me the answer was yes, and every border patrol officer will tell you that because they live it.

“My state … has spent $4.5 billion just this session to deal with this problem — a federal responsibility.

“So my question is: Do you believe, Mr. Wolf, Mr. Scott, Mr. Edlow, that Secretary Mayorkas is responsible for the consequences that followed the rescission of MPP, and do you believe he is complicit with the consequences of what has happened to this country?”

Mr. Wolf: “The answer to that is a resounding yes.”

Click here to watch the witnesses' full responses.

Original source can be found here.