U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz is asking Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for more information on how the Biden-Harris administration’s open border policies have affected airport security.
Cruz—the ranking member of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee—sent a letter to Mayorkas asking how the Transportation Security Agency is responding to security concerns with illegal aliens traversing U.S. airports.
“DHS, particularly TSA, must explain how it is responding to the serious ways in which the administration’s open border policies are undermining airport security and Americans’ Safety,” reads the letter.
Cruz claims that Biden’s border policies are weakening airport security in three ways.
Firstly, illegal aliens are able to enter the U.S. through the CHNV (Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela) parole program—which allows 30,000 nationals from those four countries to receive work permits and a two-year authorization to live in the U.S. Since January 2023, the Department of Homeland Security has flown more than 400,000 illegal aliens into 50 different airports around the U.S. More than 10,000 of the illegal aliens accounted for have been flown directly into Texas airports.
Secondly, cities housing illegal aliens are giving them shelter in their airports, which poses heightened security risks. According to Cruz, since June 2023, Chicago, Boston, and New York have housed hundreds of illegal aliens at airport facilities. At the JFK airport in Queens, New York an Ecuadorian living there broke into a secure area armed with scissors and a box cutter.
Lastly, Cruz points to the number of improperly vetted illegal aliens who have crossed the border and been released into the country without identification. Since President Joe Biden took office, more than eight million illegal aliens have been encountered, with over 1,000 of them being listed on the Terrorist Screening Data Set.
Cruz is requesting from Mayorkas “documents referring or relating to airport security or threats to security from illegal aliens, sheltering, vetting, or screening of illegal aliens at airports or on aircraft,” the number of illegal aliens that have been flown into American airports, and any actions taken to remove illegal aliens from sheltering in airports.
“It is important for Congress to review whether DHS is able to ensure airport security and whether legislative reforms are necessary,” wrote Cruz.
Cruz is requesting that Mayorkas provide answers no later than September 10, 2024.
No ads. No paywalls. No government grants. No corporate masters.
Just real news for real Texans.
Support Texas Scorecard to keep it that way!
