Dept. of Homeland Security Concedes Asylum Requests at Border Double

by Tony Lee 17 Aug 2013, 5:39 PM PDT
breitbart.com

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On Friday, the Department of Homeland Security conceded that requests for asylum in the United States along the border between the United States and Mexico have more than doubled over the last three years.

The federal government released the numbers after Breitbart News reporter Lee Stranahan reported last week that immigrants were using specific "code words" that allowed them entry into the United States in order to possibly overwhelm the country's immigration system.

According to Stranahan's report, nearly 200 people on August 5th gained entry into the United States by using the same phrase, telling officials at the border they had a "credible fear" of of drug cartels.

The Associated Press reported that such "credible fear" claims at the border "reached 14,610 by the end of June with three more months to go in the fiscal year." That is compared to "6,824 such claims for the entire 2011 fiscal year."

The Department of Homeland Security claimed the increase in such asylum requests were "modest." Officials said between Aug. 1 and Aug. 15, "an average of 30 people per day have arrived at San Diego ports asking for asylum, compared with roughly 170,000 travelers who cross the border there legally each day."

The agency also said that 91% of asylum requests were denied but made no mention of whether there were "code words" that allowed immigrants to enter. Officials also did not provide specific figures to verify that the increase in requests were indeed "modest," according to the Associated Press.

Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL), a staunch opponent of the Senate's immigration reform bill, like others concerned about such "code words," noted that such cases can set terrible precedent that could allow the country's immigration system to be abused even more.

"Frankly, I don't think the House should pass any bill until the administration shows its willingness to confront and fix this problem," Sessions said. "This is a direct threat to the orderly administration of our immigration law."

As the Associated Press noted, in order to win asylum, "an immigrant must prove he or she is being persecuted because of race, religion, political view, nationality or membership in a particular social group. They also must prove that their government is either part of the persecution or unable or unwilling to protect them."

A Department of Homeland Security spokesman acknowledged that border activity was "cyclical," and asserted that "claims of credible fear along the Southwest border vary month to month and year to year." The official said such "determinations are dictated by long-standing statute, not an issuance of discretion."

Yet, illegal immigrants--like those in the "Dream 9"--were able to enter the United States by claiming a "credible fear" of drug cartels, even though some in the group actually went back to Mexico before they re-entered the United States by claiming persecution. Those concerned about the Senate's immigration bill have noted that other immigrants could claim similar persecution to game the system.

The Department of Homeland Security acknowledged that requests from those claiming to flee from cartels have indeed surged in recent years, even from countries other than Mexico. The agency conceded that "asylum requests from Central Americans also have spiked in recent years, a move government officials attribute to reports of increased drug trafficking, violence and overall rising crime in the region."

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Senator: Asylum request ‘abuses’ should put brakes on immigration bill

Published August 13, 2013FoxNews.com

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Accounts that U.S. border officials are facing a surge of Mexican immigrants claiming asylum by using a few key words prompted a top Republican senator to call for the pending immigration bill to be put on hold "until these abuses are ended."
Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., one of the most vocal critics of the comprehensive immigration overhaul being pushed on Capitol Hill, said the surge in asylum requests "has exposed another grave flaw" in the implementation of federal immigration law.
Documents obtained by Fox News show Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been paying for hotel rooms for dozens of recently arrived families to relieve overcrowding at processing centers in the San Diego area. Some ICE employees are working overtime and others have been asked to volunteer to work weekend shifts.
Sessions pointed to the wave of asylum requests in arguing that, while the Senate has already passed an immigration bill, the House should not proceed until the issue is addressed.
"The House cannot allow such actions to continue," Sessions told FoxNews.com in a written statement. "They must use every power they have to end this absurdity. No immigration bill should advance until these abuses are ended."
Sessions, as well as the unions representing some immigration officials, have made similar arguments before about other alleged enforcement gaps -- like the practice of not deporting illegal immigrants accused of low-level offenses. They claim the bill, as drafted in the Senate, does not address these gaps.
Supporters of a comprehensive immigration bill claim it would be a boon for the country on several levels. President Obama, asked about the bill during his press conference last Friday, said the economy would be "a trillion dollars stronger" if the bill is passed, allowing millions of illegal immigrants to apply for legal status and work on the books. He also pointed to boosted border security measures.
"We know that the Senate bill strengthens border security, puts unprecedented resources on top of the unprecedented resources I've already put into border security," Obama said.
The president said that if the bill makes its way to the House floor, "it would pass." House leaders, though, have signaled interest in taking up a series of smaller bills instead.
The reports about a surge in asylum requests have raised new concerns, amid claims that illegal immigrants have learned they can attempt to get asylum by using a few key words -- namely, by claiming they have a "credible fear" of drug cartels.
Julie Myers Wood, a former assistant secretary for the Department of Homeland Security under the George W. Bush administration, told Fox News the requests are "suspicious."
"While we welcome the U.S. being a place where refugees and (asylum seekers) can come, it's troubling, and you have to think about asylum fraud in this instance," she said.
She noted that claiming "credible fear" is just a first step in the process. She said what's "concerning" is that if they are released from detention, "maybe they won't show up for their hearings" and go under the radar.
Myers Wood called for the administration to create a "task force" to look at the possibility of asylum fraud.
"This clearly has to have been orchestrated by somebody," said former U.S. Attorney for Southern California Peter Nunez. "It's beyond belief that dozens or hundreds or thousands of people would simultaneously decide that they should go to the U.S. and make this claim."
Sources say one day last week, 200 border-crossers came through the Otay Mesa Port of Entry claiming asylum, while as many as 550 overflowed inside the processing center there and in nearby San Ysidro.
Fox News spoke to four agencies responsible for the San Diego situation last week. All deferred to the Department of Homeland Security press office in Washington, D.C., which issued this statement:
"Credible fear determinations are dictated by longstanding statute, not an issuance of discretion. The USCIS officer must find that a 'significant possibility' exists that the individual may be found eligible for asylum or withholding or removal.
"If the credible fear threshold is met, the individual is placed into removal proceedings in Immigration Court. The final decision on asylum eligibility rests with an immigration judge."
A spokesman for Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., one of the leading Republican advocates for an immigration bill, said Tuesday that the administration's "failures to enforce immigration laws and the resulting distrust in the federal government" are among the biggest obstacles to passing a bill.
But spokesman Alex Conant said the Florida senator is hoping to use such a package to "end the status quo of de facto amnesty."
FoxNews.com's Judson Berger and Fox News' William LaJeunesse contributed to this report.

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