Border Patrol chief says border crisis is result of Biden’s ‘no consequences’ policy for illegal migrants

EXCLUSIVE: Border Patrol chief Raúl Ortiz said under oath that President Biden’s border policies have “no consequences” for illegal migrants traveling to the United States and are to blame for the unprecedented surge at the border and the release of hundreds of thousands inside the country.

Fox News Digital first obtained video of Ortiz’s claims, which came during a recorded deposition on July 28 as part of discovery in a lawsuit filed by Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody against the Department of of National Security and other border agencies.

Ortiz, who has more than 31 years of law enforcement experience, told attorneys representing Florida that he believes migration will increase at an exponential rate at the southern border because there are no “consequences” to stop it. tide of migrants that will flood the southern border. WE

“In my experience, we’ve seen increases when there are no consequences,” Ortiz said during the deposition.

Fox News Digital first obtained video of Ortiz’s admission, which came during a recorded deposition July 28 as part of discovery in a lawsuit filed by Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody against the Department of Homeland Security and other border agencies.
(Office of Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody)

“So if the migrant populations think they’re going to… there will be no consequences, more will come to the border. Is that what you’re saying?” asked the lawyer.

Ortiz responded, “There is an assumption that if migrant populations are told that there is a potential that they could be released, then yes, you can see increases.”

“So it will increase at an exponential rate. Is that what is being suggested here?” continued the lawyer.

“Well, I think it’s going to go up, yeah,” Ortiz replied.

The attorney further pressed Ortiz, asking, “Since President Biden was elected, does this document indicate that aliens who enter the United States illegally perceive that they will be able to enter and remain in the United States?”

“Yes,” he told lawyers while under oath.

LEAKED GEL DOCUMENT SHOWS ‘ALTERNATIVES TO DETENTION’ PROGRAM HAS ‘LITTLE VALUE’ BUT ‘SIGNIFICANT EXPENDITURE’

The “document” the plaintiff’s attorney referred to was a memo from the spring of 2021 that revealed Biden’s immigration policies, in part, fueled the surge of migrants at the border.

The DHS document, which Moody shared exclusively with Fox News Digital in April, listed “Perceptions of favorable US immigration policies” as one of the reasons migrants have given for coming up to the border. Other reasons include the search for economic and educational opportunities.

Moody’s lawsuit cites the spring memo along with the Biden administration’s November 2021 “Alternatives to Detention” document, a memo from US Customs and Border Protection detailing the Biden administration’s implementation of the program for migrants crossing the southern border.

FLORIDA AG MOODY RELEASES INTERNAL DHS DOCUMENT SHE SAYS CONTRADICTS MAYORKAS TESTIMONY ON BORDER CRISIS

Moody’s lawsuit charges that agencies under Biden’s leadership are failing to comply with established federal law, the Immigration and Nationality Act, which requires officials to detain illegal aliens at the border until they are sent back to their country of citizenship

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, left, and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

Specifically, the Alternatives to Detention program, which was created by Congress in 2004 and has seen enrollments double under the Biden administration compared to previous administrations, uses various forms of case management and technology to monitor around of the 5% of illegal immigrants who are on the “non-detainer docket,” meaning that while they are in the country illegally, they are not being detained by ICE. Tracking includes GPS tracking via ankle bracelets, phone logs and smartphone apps.

However, critics consider that the program is not particularly effective, as many of the migrants end up fleeing and disappearing inside the country.

A previous review of the Trump-era program by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) concluded that it has “little value,” has “significant expense” and found that the vast majority of illegal immigrants they were enrolled in the program throughout their immigration procedure. flee the country

Additionally, a joint Border Patrol/ICE memo circulated on July 18 obtained by Fox News Digital superseded and expanded the original November 2021 memo to include illegal immigrants traveling as part of a unit family or single adults from certain countries are being released without full processing and then must report within a period of time to an ICE facility.

The memo also notes that the program should be “used sparingly,” only when justified by an “urgent humanitarian reason” or to “address overcrowding.”

MAYORKAS CLAIM SOUTHERN BORDER IS ‘SAFE’ WITH HISTORIC MIGRANT CRISIS

During the statement, Ortiz went on to state that the southern border is currently in crisis, answering “yes” when asked if the border is “less secure for both Americans and foreigners.”

Ortiz said he agreed with a statement by the plaintiff’s attorney that “an unprecedented number” of migrants have entered the US illegally this year. There have been more than 2 million migrant encounters with the Border Patrol so far this fiscal year, already surpassing last fiscal year’s historic 1.7 million.

Ortiz’s testimony comes after DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said during the Aspen Security Forum that while the situation is a “historic challenge,” the border is “secure.”

A spokesperson for US Customs and Border Protection told Fox News Digital, “As a matter of policy, US Customs and Border Protection generally does not comment on pending litigation.”

A U.S. Border Patrol agent stands on a cliff searching for migrants who crossed the U.S.-Mexico border wall near the town of Sasabe, Arizona, on January 23, 2022.
(Salwan Georges/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

“After the Biden administration denied they were involved in the catch and release and were responsible for the historic surge on our southern border, Florida got the head of the Border Patrol to admit under oath that true,” said Moody. Fox News Digital.

“The Biden administration caused the surge, made the border less secure, and is flagrantly violating the federal laws they swore to uphold. The Biden administration is putting hard-working Border Patrol agents in positions impossible and unsustainable, risking his life and safety, and I want to thank Chief Ortiz for testifying truthfully at his deposition,” Moody said.

The lawsuit filed by Florida is scheduled for trial in January 2023 in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida.

Adam Shaw of Fox News contributed to this report.