Biden administration criticized for reinstating immigration program amidst fraud allegations: Focus on public image

One expert claims that the Biden administration's decision to restart a contentious immigration program is solely driven by political considerations.

Lora Ries, director of the Heritage Foundation's Border Security and Immigration Center, stated to Planet Chronicle Digital that all they care about is optics, getting more people in, and not between the ports, so they can claim their numbers at the southwest border are down, and they're doing great.

The Biden administration is reportedly considering reinstating a program that has enabled tens of thousands of migrants from four countries to arrive in the U.S. via direct flights, despite the program being halted last month due to "mass fraud," as NBC News reported.

Migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela were able to apply for entry and temporary work authorization in the United States with the help of a sponsor who promised to financially support them once they arrived.

Last month, the program was temporarily paused to allow the Department of Homeland Security to review sponsor applications. An initial review found that 3,218 of the approximately 101,000 applications were filed by "serial sponsors" who raised suspicion by sponsoring several migrants from the same street addresses, IP addresses, or phone numbers.

Officials discovered that nearly 600 applications were flagged due to using the same commercial warehouse address in Orlando, Florida. Additionally, a concerning trend was found from nine IP addresses potentially sponsoring many more women than men. In one of those cases, one IP address was linked to applications to sponsor females as young as 14, with a total of 14 being under the age of 18.

Although there are still 30,000 applications left for officials to review, the administration is determined to restart the program because it is believed to discourage migrants from crossing the southern border.

The strategy to jumpstart the program may temporarily reduce illegal border crossings, but the reason for using the program for this purpose is purely political, acknowledged Ries.

At a crucial point in this year's presidential election, Vice President Kamala Harris is striving to establish a more robust image on the border, as voter dissatisfaction with the Biden administration's management of security continues to mount.

Ries contended that the administration's pledge to intensify the vetting of sponsors is unlikely to result in any significant alteration.

"Ries stated that no one should trust the continued controversy over the vetting of refugees after the U.S. withdrew from Afghanistan. "This administration does not prioritize thorough vetting," he said. "They only give it lip service because they are forced to when their problems arise and they are criticized.""

Ries cautioned that the absence of thorough vetting, particularly with regard to sponsors, could result in potentially harmful consequences.

"Ries stated that as a result of increased trafficking, abuse, crime, and illegal immigration, Americans will suffer in terms of increased crime rates, higher taxes spent on supporting these individuals, and the strain on resources such as housing, education, and healthcare."

By the time of publication, the White House and Harris campaign had not responded to Planet Chronicle Digital's requests for comment.