Meuser joins colleagues in filing Title 42 amicus brief

WILKES-BARRE — U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser said Monday since President Joe Biden took office, over 2.2 million illegal immigrants have been apprehended at our southern border and thousands of pounds of deadly fentanyl have been seized.

“Our Border Patrol is already tremendously overwhelmed,” Meuser said.

Meuser, R-Dallas, filed an amicus brief, along with 53 members of Congress, and the Texas Public Policy Foundation, in support of the Title 42 injunction lawsuit filed by Louisiana, Arizona and Missouri attorneys general.

“The Biden Administration’s decision to end Title 42 will cause an estimated surge of 18,000 illegal immigrants per day, further exacerbating an already untenable situation,” Meuser said. “The Biden Administration should be focused on equipping our Border Patrol agents with the policies and resources needed to effectively secure our border, rather than taking away one of their last remaining tools.”

According to information provided by Meuser’s office:

• Although CDC and other federal agencies argue that a whole host of COVID-19 restrictions on U.S. citizens are essential to combat the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, CDC changes its tune about the necessity of COVID-19 restrictions when it comes to stemming the flow of illegal migrants on the southern border. This inconsistency is unjustifiable not only as a matter of policy, but also as a matter of law.

• The termination of Title 42 will exacerbate the current border crisis and harm the public.

• This past year, we saw a record 100,000 drug overdoses.

• In FY 2021, CBP seized over 10,000 pounds of fentanyl — fentanyl crossing the border accounts for approximately two out of every three fentanyl-related deaths.

• DHS Office of Intelligence anticipates that one million migrants could cross the southern border within the first six weeks of Title 42 ending.

• This is an anticipated surge of 18,000 migrants per day.

• CDC impermissibly failed to consider the current border crisis and the impact of a further migrant surge and failed to adequately explain its policy reversal:

• CBP could reach full capacity within a few days of Title 42 ending and be forced to release illegal immigrants into the U.S.

• We’re already seeing the release of illegal immigrants into U.S. communities across the country—this will be exacerbated when Title 42 ends.

Meuser said the brief also underscores the following:

• The Biden Administration does not have an actual plan in place to prevent the surge in illegal immigration.

• CDC’s actions create inequitable treatment of migrants to the detriment of U.S. citizens.