Title 42 expiration will be "tough" but plan "will succeed," says Homeland Security secretary
Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas said Friday U.S. officials knew the transition from the public health authority of Title 42 to "traditional" immigration authorities was "going to be tough," but that they're ready.
"We have had a plan for more than a year and a half, and we have been executing on that plan and we continue to execute on that plan," Mayorkas told "CBS Mornings."
An estimated 60,000 migrants were waiting near the U.S.-Mexico border as the Biden administration ended the Title 42 pandemic-era rule that has allowed authorities to expel those entering the country unlawfully, a top U.S. official told CBS News on Thursday. Title 42 expired overnight, at midnight.
Mayorkas said the U.S. plan to take individuals into custody and "remove them very quickly under our immigration authorities when they don't qualify for relief" will take some time to show results. He said the plan includes providing "lawful, safe and orderly pathways" for eligible individuals to enter the United States while also rooting out smugglers.
"People are going to see our plan take hold," he said. "It will take time. It will succeed."
At points all across the southern U.S. border, migrant men, women and children could be seen arriving as Title 42 expired. Approximately 400 migrants have set up camp near the border in El Paso, Texas, where National Guard members have erected barbed wire.
The city of El Paso is increasing its police presence and urging residents to remain vigilant. Border Patrol apprehended up to 10,000 migrants on some days this week, and Chief Raul Ortiz said they anticipate that number to rise.
Resources are severely limited as around 25,000 individuals remain in holding facilities. According to Ortiz, authorities will now lean on protocols established by the decades-old Title 8, which allows for the deportation of migrants from the United States to their home countries and imposes a five-year ban on reentry unless they express a fear of returning and pass an interview.
Mayorkas addressed concerns about safety at the border, stating that Border Patrol agents are doing an "extraordinary job of making it safe and secure."
But he called on Congress to act and pass legislative reform.
"Everyone agrees that our immigration system has been broken for more than two decades," he said. "We need Congress to act. We also need Congress to resource the Department of Homeland Security with the personnel, equipment, facilities and transportation ability that we have requested and we have not received."
Just hours before Title 42 expired, a Florida federal judge dealt the Biden administration a significant setback. The judge temporarily blocked a government attempt to expedite the release of migrants at holding stations, based on a similar case ruling that deemed the move unconstitutional. The Biden administration is expected to seek an emergency stay on the ruling.
Camilo Montoya-Galvez contributed to this article.
