The Biden administration has been accused of making it easier for Chinese illegal immigrants to enter the United States.
In April 2023, an internal email from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) revealed that the vetting process for Chinese illegal immigrants had been drastically simplified. According to the email, instead of the previous 40 questions, agents were now only required to ask five basic questions in order to determine if the individual posed a national security threat. This change in policy has raised concerns about the potential risks posed by Chinese illegal immigrants entering the country.
The email, sent by a CBP supervisor to approximately 500 Border Patrol agents, stated that the new guidelines were meant to ease the burden on agents who were overwhelmed by the record number of illegal crossings at the U.S. southern border.
However, the simplified vetting process has also made it easier for Chinese illegal immigrants to enter the country undetected. This has led to concerns that individuals with ties to the Chinese government, the Chinese Communist Party, or the Chinese military could potentially enter the U.S. and cause harm.
J.J. Carrell, a retired CBP deputy patrol agent in charge, spoke to the Daily Caller News Foundation about the changes. According to Carrell, the simplified vetting process has accelerated the time it takes to process Chinese illegal immigrants and has made it more difficult for agents to identify potential national security threats. He also stated that the new guidelines have made it challenging to distinguish between dangerous Chinese illegal immigrants and those who pose no harm.
The Biden administration has stated that their intention was to identify potential threats among Chinese illegal immigrants, but their actions have suggested otherwise. The former law enforcement official who provided the email to the DCNF stated that human smuggling operations immediately adapted to the new guidelines, coaching their clients on how to answer the shorter list of questions. This has made it challenging for agents to identify potential security threats, as the individuals are now prepared to answer the basic questions and avoid further scrutiny.
According to the former official, Chinese illegal immigrants are now released into the U.S. interior without a proper vetting process. They are sent to various organizations, such as Catholic Charities, with a court date set several years into the future.
This has led to a backlog of over three million immigration court cases, an all-time high. The former official also stated that smuggling operations are highly coordinated and that individuals are coached on what to say and how to say it, making it challenging for agents to identify potential security risks.
The new guidelines also raise concerns about the lack of a Special Interest Alien (SIA) list for immigrants from China. SIAs are individuals who potentially pose a national security risk to the United States.
The former official noted that this lack of a list makes it even more crucial to thoroughly vet Chinese illegal immigrants, as they may have ties to the Chinese government or military. However, with the simplified vetting process and the lack of an SIA list, it becomes more challenging to identify these risks.
DHS and CBP did not respond to requests for comment, leaving many questions unanswered. Carrell stated that during the Trump administration, the vetting process for Chinese illegal immigrants was much stricter.
They would be checked against databases for criminal history and would then be set up for deportation. However, the current process of street-releasing Chinese illegal immigrants into the country without proper vetting raises concerns about national security. With the ongoing surge of illegal crossings at the southern border, it remains to be seen how the Biden administration will address these concerns.