LTE – JoAnn Utphall – 8-18-2021
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“President Joe Biden continues promoting coronavirus vaccine mandates for American citizens, but the White House still struggles to explain why that standard is not applied to migrants crossing the Southern border” sums up the Breitbart article.
It just doesn’t make sense that US citizens have to be vaccinated to leave this country and yet illegal immigrants don’t have to be vaccinated to come into the US.
Another issue that does not make sense either if the illegal immigrants who test positive are released into US cities without being quarantined for two weeks (like US citizens have to do). The Breitbart article gave the example of McAllen Texas where 7,000 immigrants who tested positive for the virus were released into McAllen in the last six months. McAllen had to declare a state of emergency in order to get funding in order to address the crisis. McAllen’s Mayor Villalobos stated that lately they have been getting about 1,800 immigrants a day. What makes it even a more significant problem is the fact that about 15% of the immigrants have Covid. The city has set up emergency temporary shelters for those who test positive for Covid.
Press Secretary Psaki defends the Biden administration by pointing out that all immigrants are required to wear masks when in custody and those who are showing significant signs of Covid are taken to healthcare facilities. She recently said that the Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS) is “taking steps” to help stop the spread (mask mandate). In a report given out by the DHS, it plans to offer vaccines to immigrants in custody and even those facing deportation but there is nothing in this report stating that the immigrants would be held to the same standard as what is mandated for international travelers to the US.
Pres. Biden indicated that he is willing to allow border officials to send some border-crossers back to Mexico; using the Title 42 authority but would permit minors to remain.
According to a Washington Examiner article, “The city of Laredo, Texas, has refused to take in migrants who have been bused in from elsewhere on the border after discovering 40% of them tested positive for the coronavirus.” Worried that sick illegal immigrants arriving in Laredo would overwhelm their medical resources, including their local hospital (which is small enough that it does not have a pediatric intensive care), Laredo officials contracted with private buses to transport immigrants (arriving from the Rio Grande Valley) to larger cities – costing the city, $10,000 per day. Since late spring, Border Patrol has been busing thousands of immigrants to Laredo because the shelters in McAllen were overwhelmed. Since April the infection rate has risen from 4% to 40%.
The Texas Border Coalition of business leaders and county and city officials have voted unanimously for a resolution can calls for an asylum admission pause of asylum applicants at the southern border. The resolution also requests more federal aid to help local government and non-government organizations to help the local areas that are being overwhelmed by the continual stream of immigrants.
JoAnn Utphall
Boyceville