January 1, Unveiled: Biden’s Unexpected Challenge Amid 2024 Reelection Bid

The Biden administration, recognized for its pro-migration stance, is preparing for a potential large-scale migrant exodus from the unstable nation of Haiti, coinciding with Biden’s 2024 reelection campaign. There are signs that the administration may resort to forcibly returning migrants to the turbulent island nation.

Rebecca Zimmerman, a senior Pentagon official in charge of homeland defense, recently voiced her concerns to the House Armed Services Committee. “The driving conditions in Haiti could very well press more people [to migrate],” she stated. She also disclosed that additional assistance has been approved for the Coast Guard.

Gen. Laura Richardson, commander of U.S. Southern Command, which is responsible for conducting homeland defense, shared Zimmerman’s sentiments. “I think that we need to be postured appropriately for that,” she said. “I have put in a request for increased capability to do exactly that … we are ready if we need to deal with a mass migration.”

An email from border agents in Miami, Fla., warned that federal officials might not attempt to return migrants who sail into U.S. coastal waters on small, sail-powered freighters. “The Coast Guard may not be stopping Haitian sail freighter[s],” the email read. “They will just be escorting them into land [ports].”

The email also suggested that the collapse of the government in Haiti could mean that repatriation of Haitians may not be possible in the near future.

Despite the Biden administration’s pro-migration policies, it has shown a willingness to take a hard line on migrants when necessary. In September 2021, around 30,000 migrants crossed the border river into Del Rio, Texas, causing a crisis that was widely reported in the media. The crisis negatively affected Biden’s poll ratings, despite attempts by border chief Alejandro Mayorkas to deflect criticism onto border agents.

In response to the crisis, Mayorkas flew more than 20,000 Haitians back to the island, a move that shocked many of the returnees, some of whom had left Haiti years ago to live in South American countries. Pro-migration groups were appalled by the deportations, but accepted them as the political cost of Biden’s pro-migration policies.

Mayorkas has consistently shown support for migrants and migration, despite the potential harm to American citizens and the migrants who risk their lives to respond to his open border invitation. He has repeatedly stated his support for “equity” for migrants, believing they should have the same legal rights as U.S. citizens.

In December 2022, Mayorkas granted “Temporary Legal Status” to an additional 110,000 Haitians who had entered the U.S. illegally since June 2021. This decision increased the number of Haitians with TPS to 250,000.

In the following month, Mayorkas established a legally contested “parole pathway” program for Haitians to enter the U.S. Since then, he has moved more than 138,000 Haitians into American communities, workplaces, and homes through his open-ended “CNHV” parole program.

Despite facing legal challenges, the program survived a court case when a judge ruled that Texas and other states could not sue to block the program. The judge concluded that the program does not cost state governments more than they would pay if the Haitian migrants arrived illegally.

Mayorkas has justified his pro-migration stance by citing his migrant parents, his sympathy for migrants, his support for “equity” between Americans and foreigners, and his willingness to prioritize his beliefs over the law.

However, numerous polls indicate that Americans oppose Mayorkas’ pro-migration policies and that Biden’s reelection could be jeopardized by the public’s growing opposition to migration. In the coming months, Mayorkas may have to choose between his commitment to “equity” for a large number of Haitian migrants and the political survival of the Biden administration.

“At the moment, we have not yet seen large numbers [of migrants]—what we would characterize as a maritime mass migration,” Zimmerman told Gaetz during the March 12 hearing.

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