Haitians Meet the New Deporter-in-Chief

Biden presented himself as the immigration antithesis of Trump, but such promises have not been kept.

Images of U.S. Border Patrol agents supposedly whipping Haitian migrants in Del Rio, Texas, went viral online in September. President Joe Biden responded by suspending horse patrols. But the photographs and subsequent reporting on them quickly came under fire: The "whips," it seemed, were not actually whips.

The media kerfuffle diverted attention from a very real problem: In spite of Biden's promises to sculpt immigration policy into something more humane, the Haitian migrants in those pictures—seen running from government agents on horseback—essentially had no legal avenue to come to the United States. While the Border Patrol is far from compassionate, the root issue is the policies it is charged with enforcing.

Border Patrol apprehended more than 45,000 Haitians at the U.S.-Mexico border during the fiscal year that ended on September 30—an increase of more than 530 percent from the 4,395 Haitians apprehended in fiscal 2020. More than 17,000 arrests occurred in that final month alone, after the July assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse and a magnitude 7.2 earthquake in August. But as camps of Haitians at the southern border continued to grow and the humanitarian crisis in gang-infested Haiti worsened, U.S. immigration policy stayed the same.

Although Biden presented himself as the immigration antithesis of former President Donald Trump, his administration has invoked Title 42, a public health provision that allows the government to expel migrants upon arrival instead of allowing them to claim asylum, as U.S. immigration law ordinarily allows them to do at any port of entry. Trump invoked Title 42 in March 2020 at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Biden has not reversed that policy, despite the advent of COVID-19 vaccines.

"Our borders are not open," U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas warned in September. "People should not make the dangerous journey."

Some still tried. In fiscal 2021, Haitians without immediate family members in the U.S. received just a few hundred work visas, while thousands were arrested and immediately deported. The U.S. returned about 8,500 migrants to Haiti via plane last fall.

Nearly a year into his administration, Biden did make one modest policy change. In November, the administration announced that migrants from six countries will again be eligible for temporary work visas for seasonal jobs, a privilege that Trump withdrew in 2018. On that list was Haiti, giving a select few migrants from the broken country at least one legal pathway to the United States.

Comments

[Mickey Rat]

"In spite of Biden's promises to sculpt immigration policy into something more humane, the Haitian migrants in those pictures—seen running from government agents on horseback—essentially had no legal avenue to come to the United States. While the Border Patrol is far from compassionate, the root issue is the policies it is charged with enforcing."

Well, you see Billy, despite his many executive orders, Biden is not actually a dictator, and perhaps he was not as on board with the idea of open borders as your typical colleague at Reason is. The fact is, no matter how large the numbers of Haitians may be looking to enter the USA, that does not justify asserting they have a right to do so. And the increase in numbers may be, in part, due to the irresponsible rhetoric of the Biden campaign and administration in criticizing his predecessor, raising unrealistic expectations.

[Jerryskids]

The problem is that Haitians are familiar with the tender mercies of an overweening government and not favorably disposed to Joe Biden's policies.

[Greta Stratton]

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[MaheenKamal]

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[Sarah Palin's Buttplug 2]

The U.S. returned about 8,500 migrants to Haiti via plane last fall.

This can't be true. Wingnut.com, Fox News, and Ken Schulz all claim that Biden has an "open borders" policy and people just walk in and are handed checks as they cross the border.

[Naime Bond]

Of course it can't be true but only when liberals do the math.
0.00425 8500 out of 2 million illegals turned back.
0.99575 percent of illegals entering illegally, free and clear, under demented Joe with the government spending 10's of millions per week to support them while black American citizens have lost businesses, income and jobs (and possibly their retirement due to raging inflation) during the pandemic.
0.30000 Willie Mays batting average.

[Sarah Palin's Buttplug 2]

Oh, I get it. Some illegals entered unnoticed by ICE/Border Patrol so that constitutes an "open borders" policy - but only when a Democrat is president.

The same thing occurred when Donnie-Boy was president but those don't count.

And where is that fucking wall the Con Man promised to build? He was supposed to be "the greatest builder of all time".

Was it just more hot air from that lying motherfucker?

[Chumby]

We understand that you strongly support unaccompanied illegal alien children entering the country. Something about jobs American kids are not doing. Perhaps you have some positions you’d like to fill.

[OpenBordersLiberal-tarian]

Have you seen the latest pro-freedom rant from your second favorite libertarian celeb Howard Stern?

Howard Stern GOES OFF On ‘F*cknut’ Novak Djokovic Over His Covid Controversies: ‘Throw Him Right The F*ck Out Of Tennis’

"Howard Stern has already called for Aaron Rodgers to be kicked out of the NFL for his vaccine stance, and now he’s calling for tennis star Novak Djokovic to be banned from playing tennis."

Wow. I can see why you like the guy so much. He practices the same brand of left-libertarianism as you — basically MSM #Resistance liberalism, just with more naughty words.

Maybe Stern will surpass Bill Maher one day.

#LibertariansForRuiningTheLivelihoodsOfAntiVaxxers
#(EvenEliteAthletesInTheirThirties)

[Chumby]

Howard the Cuck

[OpenBordersLiberal-tarian]

You're just jealous you'll never be a principled libertarian like Mr. Buttplug and Bill Maher and Howard Stern.

[Sarah Palin's Buttplug 2]

When did Howard claim to be a libertarian?

[VULGAR MADMAN]

That time he ran for governor as a libertarian?

[Chumby]

That libertarian monicker I’ll be robin’; quivers with fear Stern shall.

[Sometimes a Great Notion]

Stern's still alive?

[Sarah Palin's Buttplug 2]

Yes. You must be thinking of Fat Rush. He is the shock jock who kicked the bucket last year.

[VULGAR MADMAN]

No one expects anything better from you.

[Chumby]

Hait crime!

[Dillinger]

island on the side of not a Hait crime.

[Longtobefree]

How is it remotely possible that a democrat politician lying is in any way news?

[Brian]

Biden is racist, as we know all white men his age are.

[OpenBordersLiberal-tarian]

"Biden presented himself as the immigration antithesis of Trump"

Yup. And he delivered.

Drumpf literally caged kids. Biden doesn't do that. Because no Democrat would.

Drumpf literally ran concentration camps. Are prominent Democrats complaining of concentration camps now? No, because Biden dismantled them.

Drumpf's immigration polices were so monstrous they caused AOC to cry in front of a fence. Have you seen any photos of her doing that since Biden took over? No, because Biden fixed things.

#LibertariansForBiden

[Winston in Wonderland]

You do know that the photos of caged kids that made the rounds were actually taken during the Obama administration, don't you?

[Overt]

The Biden presidency has been an interesting set of lessons for the younger Reason Contributors who thought Trump was Just. The. Worst.

1) Lawlessness is not the same as, or a preferable alternative to, an absence of laws. As much as libertarians would prefer a less restrictionist immigration system, Biden's existing system is a complete mess, and actually worse than Trump's. Not only has he failed to make any progress on actual laws that confound immigrants, but his rhetoric and indifference has led to all time highs in the numbers of immigrants that are now subject to these arbitrary and confusing statuses.

One would have thought that many of the usual suspects contributing to Reason would have realized that it is not a winning strategy in outcomes or in popularity to align with the cause of lawlessness. Over last summer libertarians saw Qualified Immunity and other police reform defeats snatched from the jaws of victory because proponents of these reforms were increasingly seen as supporting or at least excusing the general lawlessness gripping cities.

2) The Democratic party has no incentive to solve for Immigration, and after 2 administrations with majority congress, it is clear they aren't going to do so. Democratic political strategy is to foster an environment of Immigration lawlessness to trap as many immigrants as possible in the American system where they can be held hostage for votes.

As much as we have seen Reason contributors complain that the Democrats haven't fixed the problems, not once have we seen them acknowledge just how cynical and exploitative the Democrat's "Plantation" MO really is. For all his faults, it was clear what Trump's strategy was. He was going to restrict all immigration. But the Dems, for all their bluster about helping immigrants, are doing nothing but increase the crisis at our borders. This lawlessness feeds into Democrat fundraising and base building, but this intentional lawlessness is actually hurting the causes of libertarians who want to see a more permissive immigration system.

[Outlaw Josey Wales]

I agree with what you say. Maintaining the status quo is the policy. For whatever reason, whether it is to enhance the voting pool or to coincide with the feels of the constituency. The signs on the lawns were clear, human beings were not to be criminalized. The lawn owners had no intention of letting these new human beings live anywhere near them, but 'we' should care about them.
For all his faults, it was clear what Trump's strategy was. He was going to restrict all immigration.
I thought Trump's intention was more than just restricting immigration, and I thought it had merit and was working. The word got out that it was no cakewalk to come int he US anymore, and the flow slowed. By forcing the awkward Mexico stance, Mexico had to confront their role in the process and use their resources to accommodate new people who they had previously just shunted across the border to us. Lastly, those who wanted to take advantage of having the immigrants here would have to come up with a better plan than the status quo to make that happen. D or R, for whatever reasons; labor, votes, virtue signaling etc. THAT is why, I believe, rather than work towards a new goal, the Dems and media demonized the new changes, the ideas of Trump and did nothing to work towards a new solution.
It was almost comical when Biden took over how quickly the wave of new immigrants increased tenfold. Embarrassing clear why they were coming and where the Dems stood on the issue.
It was a shame really. I thought there was a real opportunity for change, instead, we get the same ole same ole.

[Ken Shultz]

"While the Border Patrol is far from compassionate, the root issue is the policies it is charged with enforcing."

The root issues are: 1) The reality of hundreds of thousands of Haitians flooding into the U.S., and 2) The lack of support for that among the American people.

The ultimate issue is that Trump didn't simply enforce the law the way it is because he's mean and he hates people, and every progressive who bought that narrative made a fool of themselves.

It isn't just that questions of naturalization are within the proper purview of democracy--and so the law should reflect public opinion on that issue. It's also that any policy that's too far out of the mainstream is unachievable in reality.

The line between what is and isn't within the proper purview of democracy isn't arbitrarily drawn and can't be redrawn arbitrarily. If you can't see it in the U.S., take a look at Europe. They could implement an immigration policy that was more permissive than public opinion called for at the time, but they couldn't avoid the negative consequences of that, which included populist anti-immigration parties sweeping over France, Germany, Italy, and elsewhere, as well as the UK leaving the EU in no small part over a desire to set their own immigration policies independent of Brussels.

It's the same thing in the USA. Taxes, spending, treaties, wars, and naturalization policy are all in the proper purview of democracy, and when our leaders get ahead of public opinion on these issues--typically because of realities on the ground--it's like our leaders are committing political suicide. We can debate about what our leaders should do depending on whatever criteria we like, but there's only one way to a sustainable change in legitimately democratic policies, and that sustainable change comes from persuading the American people to want something different.

I see two barriers to achieving change this way.

1) The contempt of elitists for average Americans and their ability to be persuaded.

2) A socialist mindset that can scarcely imagine arguing that immigration is in the best economic interests of the American people.

[John Rohan]

the Haitian migrants in those pictures—seen running from government agents on horseback—essentially had no legal avenue to come to the United States.

No, they have the EXACT SAME avenues available to everyone else in the entire world. Immigration by student visa, immigrant lottery, marrying a US citizen, etc. It's not our fault nor our problem that a lot more Haitians than Swedes want to come to the United States. Poverty isn't a reason for asylum, and just because Haitians are poor doesn't mean they have the right to emigrate here.

[Winston in Wonderland]

Did articles from the Onion accidentally find their way into Reason, or have Reason's editors have lost their collective friggin' minds?

This particular article argues that we want to open our borders to migrants from a country infested by gangs (What could go wrong!), and another article in this same issue argues that opening the borders will somehow alleviate food shortages at grocery stores.

[Technomad]

One question I had was how so many Haitians had got into Mexico in the first place. Mexico's a long way from Haiti, across a lot of salt water, and requires visas from Haitians.