Immigration
AOC: Calling the border crisis a ‘surge’ pushes ‘white supremacist philosophy’
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC), D-N.Y., has criticized the use of the word “surge” to describe the border crisis because it “consciously is trying to invoke a militaristic frame.”
“They wanna say, ‘But what about the surge?” Ocasio-Cortez said to her Instagram followers during a live broadcast on Tuesday. “Well, first of all, just gut check, stop. Anyone who’s using the term ‘surge’ around you consciously is trying to invoke a militaristic frame.”
The Democratic “squad” member went on to say that anyone using the term “surge” is pushing a “white supremacist idea-philosophy.”
“And that’s a problem because this is not a surge, these are children and they are not insurgents and we are not being invaded, which by the way is a White supremacist idea-philosophy, the idea that if another is coming in the population that this is an invasion of who we are.”
Ocasio Cortez’s statements sparked outrage online, with many calling her out since she has yet to visit the southern border.
Fox News contributor Lara Trump slammed Ocasio Cortez on Monday for her “total hypocrisy.”
“It’s total hypocrisy,” she said. “The way they covered this under the Trump administration versus the Biden administration is total hypocrisy. Where is the outrage from the folks on the left? Where is AOC down there doing a photo op?”
Ocasio Cortez, who has been vocally opposed to the Trump administration’s immigration policies, has been quiet regarding President Joe Biden’s handling of the border crisis. She previously accused Trump of housing migrants in “concentration camps.”
“What’s happening at our Border is a human rights crisis. But Trump is not in Office and ultimately, the Dems want to turn these folks into voters, so the media will remain silent and AOC will casually blame white supremacy,” a twitter user wrote.
Ocasio Cortez has yet to announce any plans to travel to the southern border while her fellow “squad” member Rep. Ilhan Omar said that she will be joining the delegation to the Carrizo Springs facility on Friday.
Follow Annaliese Levy on Twitter @AnnalieseLevy
Immigration
Morale Surges Among Border Authorities Following Trump’s Election, Tom Homan’s Appointment as ‘Border Czar’
The election of President-elect Donald Trump has sparked a notable rise in morale among U.S. border authorities, who view Trump’s commitment to border security as a turning point after years of relaxed immigration policies. Following four years that saw record numbers of migrants entering the United States, Trump’s election on promises of border security and mass deportations has revived a sense of optimism within the ranks of Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
On Monday, Trump tapped Tom Homan, the former acting director of ICE and a respected figure among border authorities, as his administration’s “border czar.” Homan, who has been a vocal critic of the Biden administration’s immigration policies, expressed his determination to address the border crisis. Appearing on Fox & Friends, Homan said, “I’ve been on this network for years complaining about what this administration did to this border… So when the president asked me, ‘Would you come back and fix it?’ Of course, I’d be a hypocrite if I didn’t.”
Under President Biden, illegal border crossings surged to nearly 3 million in fiscal 2024, according to the Department of Homeland Security. Since fiscal 2021, there have been over 10.8 million encounters involving illegal immigrants at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Homan has publicly backed Trump’s plan for mass deportations, emphasizing that public safety and national security threats would be prioritized. When asked in a recent 60 Minutes interview if these deportations would lead to family separations, Homan responded that “families can be deported together.”
For many border officials, Homan’s appointment and Trump’s election represent a long-awaited return to policies they believe are essential to restoring border security. National Border Patrol Council President Paul Perez noted, “The morale is through the roof… We’ve received hundreds of calls, texts, emails just saying how happy the agents are.”
“Troops are finally feeling like the sun is coming out after a very long storm,” said one ICE officer in Massachusetts, while an ICE officer in New York described morale as “super high, especially with the Homan news.” An Arizona Border Patrol agent added, “Ecstatic to go to work! Morale is even higher than the first time he won.”
The morale boost has even impacted retirement plans for some border agents. “There are a lot of agents that had originally said that they would retire if President Trump did not win,” Perez said. “Now those same agents are saying they’re going to hold back on their retirement because they want to serve under this administration again.”
A California border agent shared that “nothing will change until Tom Homan takes the leash off us,” while a Texas border agent commented on the renewed enthusiasm: “People who were going to retire are not, and everyone is happy.” Another senior ICE official expressed satisfaction, saying, “People know now they will get to do the work they signed up to do… They know they can get the bad guys now. Public safety threats, national security threats, gang members—here we come.”
Officials also expressed relief at the prospect of no longer being required to use politically correct language, such as referring to illegal immigrants as “noncitizens.”
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