Andrew Arthur, a former immigration judge, has accused the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) of intentionally withholding the monthly count of undocumented immigrants released into the United States.
Arthur, who presided over immigration cases in York, Pennsylvania for eight years, reportedly shared his concerns with Just the News, suggesting that the DHS's reluctance to disclose such data is politically motivated to avoid casting a negative light on the Biden administration.
Arthur argued that the public should have access to this information, similar to how encounters at the borders are reported by Customs and Border Protection (CBP). "The only reason why ICE and OFO [Office of Field Operations] would refuse to disclose that information is to hide the fact that it is releasing more than 100,000 aliens per month into the United States and to conceal the effects of those migrant releases on communities across the United States," Arthur stated.
He further pointed out that the DHS has previously shown its capability to disclose such statistics, referencing a past instance where the department provided data on the number of undocumented entrants encountered at the southwest border by CBP and subsequently released. However, Arthur claimed that the authorities have "refused to do so since those orders were vacated in August 2022."
Arthur also questioned the credibility of the CBP Office of Field Operations' statistics, which consistently show a monthly count of "0" for those released or "alternatively detained." He explained, "That is a legal and factual impossibility, because those aliens are either released or detained there is no third option."
Echoing Arthur's sentiments, Darrell Issa, a Republican representative from California, criticized the Biden administration for its lack of transparency. A member of the House Judiciary Committee, Issa argued that these figures should be reported to Congress daily, stating, "It's obvious why the Biden Admin does everything it can to minimize transparency."
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