Ron Estes: Ignoring the crisis on the southern border isn’t an option

I recently toured the crisis at our southern border — something President Biden and Vice President Harris have refused to do or acknowledge. While there, I witnessed smugglers using a Romanian family as a distraction to sneak another man across the border. Customs and Border Protection officers informed me that this is a standard cartel tactic to smuggle drugs and gang members into the U.S.

While it’s impossible to know the true scale of the smuggling into our country, it’s clear that we’ve lost control of our southern border to aggressive criminal cartels. Every day cartels use new tactics and sophisticated technology like drones to openly operate across our southern border.

The left falsely conflates border security as anti-immigration instead of recognizing real security threats that exist. According to the Pew Research Center, “The United States has more immigrants than any other country in the world.” It’s what makes America unique. My concern, and the concern of many Kansans, is the need to keep our country safe from criminals that exploit our border vulnerabilities daily. We need to ensure we have the right tools and processes for legal immigration while deterring illegal immigration and criminal activity.

Our officers on the border need help, not excuses. But Biden’s administration continues to downplay the crisis. One declassified intelligence report hinted at the true scale of the problem; it concluded that drug-trafficking groups had gained effective control over about 20% of Mexico. And cartels control the areas around each legal entry point to the United States. It’s also been reported by Reuters that “Mexico is an origin, transit and destination country for human trafficking, a global business estimated to be worth $150 billion a year.” This is an astronomical amount — totaling more than Microsoft’s earnings last year.

Common sense calls for stronger border security, not less. But Biden’s administration is letting radical coalitions within the Democrat party make the policy decisions. Since taking office, Biden has halted construction for critical segments of the wall and removed protocols that decreased illegal border activity, like the Migrant Protection Protocols that required asylum seekers wait in Mexico before entering the U.S.

I witnessed the gap in the wall being exploited. It’s an embarrassment – materials bought and paid for by your tax dollars are sitting on the ground while Customs and Border Protection works double time to defend those critical areas. It’s like paying for new roofing materials for a house and then paying people to stand on top with umbrellas instead of installing the roof.

If the wall was completed, resources used to monitor this area could be used to help prevent the horrific rise in human and drug trafficking.

By encouraging more illegal immigration and vilifying attempts by Republicans to solve the problem, Biden’s White House has essentially given the cartels a stimulus package. Chaos means profit for these transnational gangs that operate between Latin America and the U.S.

Despite the difficult situation, CBP officers are tirelessly working to keep this country safe. It was an honor to thank them and hear their stories. They’re working under crisis conditions and lacking necessary support. As a member of the Border Security Caucus, I recognize the many challenges that threaten our national security, and that we need common sense policy.

Under President Trump, the U.S. started to fight back against this lawlessness. The wall helped defend the border against cartels and freed up the CBP to help save those smuggled across the border by criminals.

Unlike some in Congress who want to use immigration as a talking point, I’ve worked with my colleagues to promote good policy that addresses legal and illegal immigration. It’s time to finish the wall and give the CBP the resources they need — including more officers, enhanced technology, closed loopholes and a wall along our southern border where it makes sense. A lawless border is unacceptable.

The U.S. should have good immigration policy, and that can’t happen without first having a secure border.

This story was originally published May 23, 2021 at 4:37 AM.