Speaker Johnson Responds to President Biden’s Endorsement of Senate Border Deal

January 27, 2024

Contact: Taylor Haulsee

President has full authority under existing law to close the border

WASHINGTON, DC — Speaker Mike Johnson released the following statement regarding the President’s statement endorsing the Senate border deal:

“President Biden falsely claimed yesterday he needs Congress to pass a new law to allow him to close the southern border, but he knows that is untrue.

“As I explained to him in a letter late last year, and have specifically reiterated to him on multiple occasions since, he can and must take executive action immediately to reverse the catastrophe he has created.

“The Immigration and Nationality Act coupled with recent Supreme Court precedent give him ‘ample authority’ to ‘suspend the entry of all aliens or any class of aliens as immigrants or nonimmigrants, or impose on the entry of aliens any restrictions he may deem to be appropriate.’

“As my letter stated, President Biden can begin to secure the border by ending catch-and-release, ceasing exploitation of parole authority, reinstating the Remain in Mexico program, expanding the use of expedited removal authority, and renewing construction of the border wall. The President must start by using the broad legal authority he already possesses to reclaim our nation’s sovereignty and end the mass release of illegal aliens into our country.

“According to reports, the Senate’s pending proposal would expressly allow as many as 150,000 illegal crossings each month (1.8 million per year) before any new ‘shutdown’ authority could be used. At that point, America will have already been surrendered.”

Background

Last Month, Speaker Johnson Sent President Biden A Letter Encouraging Him To Use Existing Legal Authority To Secure The Border

Read The Letter Here.

Title 8 Authority Under The Immigration And Nationality Act Gives The President Broad Authority To “Suspend The Entry Of All Aliens Or Any Class Of Aliens As Immigrants Or Nonimmigrants” If Doing So Is In The National Interest

Title 8 Authorizes The President To “Suspend The Entry Of All Aliens Or Any Class Of Aliens As Immigrants Or Nonimmigrants” If Their Entry Is “Detrimental To The Interests Of The United States.” “Whenever the President finds that the entry of any aliens or of any class of aliens into the United States would be detrimental to the interests of the United States, he may by proclamation, and for such period as he shall deem necessary, suspend the entry of all aliens or any class of aliens as immigrants or nonimmigrants, or impose on the entry of aliens any restrictions he may deem to be appropriate.” (8 U.S. Code § 1182, Accessed 1/27/24)

In Trump v. Hawaii, The Supreme Court Held The Law “Entrusts To The President The Decisions Whether And When To Suspend Entry, Whose Entry To Suspend, For How Long, And On What Conditions,” Vesting In Him “Ample Power.” “By its terms, §1182(f) exudes deference to the President in every clause. It entrusts to the President the decisions whether and when to suspend entry, whose entry to suspend, for how long, and on what conditions. It thus vests the President with ‘ample power’ to impose entry restrictions in addition to those elsewhere enumerated in the INA. Sale, 509 U. S., at 187.” (Trump vs. Hawaii, et al., U.S. Supreme Court, No. 17–965. Decided 6/26/18)

From FY 2009 Until FY 2021, Under Presidents Obama And Trump, In No Fiscal Year Did Illegal Encounters Exceed One Million

According To News Reports, The Senate Proposal Would Allow Over 4,000 Illegal Encounters A Day Before Using New Authority To Shut Down the Border

Under The Reported Details Of The New Authority, Between 4,000 To 8,500 Illegal Encounters Would Have To Happen Daily Before The New Authority Kicked In. “Under the soon-to-be-released package, the Department of Homeland Security would be granted new emergency authority to shut down the border if daily average migrant encounters reach 4,000 over a one-week span. If migrant crossings increase above 5,000 on average per day on a given week, DHS would be required to close the border to migrants crossing illegally not entering at ports of entry. Certain migrants would be allowed to stay if they prove to be fleeing torture or persecution in their countries. Moreover, if crossings exceed 8,500 in a single day, DHS would be required to close the border to migrants illegally crossing the border. Under the proposal, any migrant who tries to cross the border twice while it is closed would be banned from entering the US for one year.” (Manu Raju, “Key Senators Cut Deal To Give US New Power To Clamp Down On Border Crossings,” CNN, 1/26/24)

###