1,000 illegal immigrants rush bridge from Mexico to US

By 
 March 13, 2023

At least 1,000 illegal immigrants, mostly from Venezuela, rushed the Paso Del Norte bridge, which connects Mexico to El Paso, Texas, in order to gain entry to the United States on Sunday. 

The rush, which included many elderly immigrants and children, was prompted by a rumor that the U.S. was allowing fast-tracked access across the border, according to the New York Post.

Crowd control measures were used and barriers erected to prevent the immigrants from crossing the bridge and entering the U.S. Mexican authorities also attempted to contain the crowds and prevent them from crossing the border.

Traffic halted

The "port-hardening measures resulted in the closure of traffic across the bridge for much of the day Sunday. Traffic was reopened by Sunday night.

“CBP is working to maintain the legal and orderly flow of entry to the U.S. while protecting the safety and security of legitimate trade and travel, CBP facilities and the CBP workforce,” the agency said.

Two other ports of entry were also affected. Barriers were erected at nearby Stanton border crossing and at the Bridge of the Americas crossing, but were only used for about an hour.

El Paso Deputy City Manager Mario D’Agostino reported that no breach had occurred by Sunday night and that crowds were diminishing at the bridge.

The Emergency Operations Center was shut down by Sunday night and conditions at the border were returning to normal.

Border policies changing

The rush comes as Biden continues to implement or consider more stringent border measures that could prevent most migrants from being released into the U.S. interior as had been happening since Biden took office.

With Title 42 health-related border controls ending in May, Biden officials fear an even bigger rush to the border that could overwhelm border officials, and have slowly been reverting to some Trump-era border policies.

Trump's policy to automatically deport any illegal asylum-seekers is one that's being revived, and Biden is reportedly considering going back to family detention, which helped to expose human traffickers posing as family members.

There's simply no way to let everyone into the U.S. who wants to come here, and there's no reason we should do so when it threatens our own ability to function as a country.

It may have taken Biden two years, but he and his officials finally seem to be understanding that his open border policies aren't working and need to be changed.

" A free people [claim] their rights, as derived from the laws of nature."
Thomas Jefferson
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