Senior administration officials announced on Tuesday that the Biden administration plans to reopen four ports of entry at the southern border this week. These ports had been closed due to the overwhelming number of migrants entering the country.
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The ports in Eagle Pass, Texas; San Ysidro, California; Lukeville, Arizona; and Nogales, Arizona will be operational again from Thursday.
They were closed a long time period in December because the U.S. Customs and Border Protection redirected their resources to address the surge of migrants heading to the U.S.
The planned reopening's are in response to a historically high number of encounters with migrants at the southern border, surpassing 300,000 in a single month.
On Monday, CBP encountered less than 500 migrants in the Del Rio region of Texas, including Eagle Pass, which is seen as a substantial improvement compared to previous weeks.
A senior administration official acknowledged that the decrease in encounters is partly expected during the holiday season, but also emphasized that the decision to close ports of entry is always a last resort and is not taken lightly.
The decrease in migration encounters at the border was partially due to increased enforcement efforts in Mexico, although specific details were not provided.
According to an official, the Biden administration has engaged with Mexican train companies and the Mexican government after observing over a thousand migrants riding on commercial trains in Mexico.
A senior administration official expects that the number of encounters at the border will continue to vary over time.
In addition, officials have acknowledged reports of a migrant caravan that appears to be heading towards the U.S. border. One official noted that recent reports suggest that the caravan has not moved from a city in southern Mexico for several days.
The official expressed encouragement that the caravan is not progressing and seems to be significantly decreasing in size.
No updates were provided by administration officials regarding the Senate border funding talks on Capitol Hill. However, negotiations have been ongoing during the holiday break, and one official expressed optimism about the progress being made.
On Tuesday, three lead Senate negotiators, Chris Murphy, Kyrsten Sinema, and James Lankford, met with Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for almost two hours to resume in-person border discussions.
Sinema and Senator Mark Kelly issued a joint statement expressing their relief over the reopening of border crossings in Arizona, but emphasized that the closure and the flaws in the border system continue to have devastating effects in the state.
President Joe Biden's $106 billion funding package is currently facing obstacles in Congress, largely due to Republican opposition. The proposed package includes aid for Ukraine, Israel, and funding for U.S. border operations.
Republicans are demanding stricter immigration and border policies before approving the funding. President Biden discussed the border issues and emphasized the necessity of action as he left Marine One on the White House lawn. In response to a reporter's question, he expressed the need for adequate funding in order to protect the border.
