New Honduran Migrant Caravan Forms: Wasn’t This Predictable?

In what might be a glimpse of things to come, a new migrant caravan has formed in the northern Honduran city of San Pedro de Sula and, according to its participants, is bound for the U.S. Migrants are claiming that they are fleeing the destruction unleashed by two hurricanes on several Northern Triangle countries, but have not explained why they will walk through Mexico – which was largely untouched by the hurricanes and instead opt for a much longer trip to the U.S.

For months, it has been reported that many prospective migrants from Central America have been watching immigration-related comments from the Biden-Harris camp.  The cornerstone of their immigration platform is a mass amnesty, but also includes halting removals of illegal aliens for the first 100 days, and backing out of all of the Trump Administration era multilateral agreements made with our neighbors to the south. These agreements have significantly reduced the flow of migrants that fueled the catch and release program for decades.

This raises a simple question:  Are the hurricanes being used as an excuse to attempt to enter the U.S. and seek work, or is this the result of the promises from the Biden-Harris team to lay out the welcome mat for every illegal alien looking to make a dash for the border and catch an amnesty in the process?

Jose Luis Gonzalez, a coordinator of the Guatemala Red Jesuita con Migrantes, said many migrants are encouraged to make the trip and test the Biden administration. “When there is a change in government in the U.S. or Mexico, caravans start to move because they are testing the waters to see how authorities respond,” he told the Philadelphia Inquirer.

And border apprehension numbers seem to bear that argument out. Apprehensions along the Southwest Border have been climbing since April when the Biden-Harris campaign began discussing its immigration plans and the economic effects of COVID began hitting people across the globe. Since April, apprehensions have risen from roughly 17,000 in to nearly 58,000 in September. 

Regardless of the “pull factor,” the Biden-Harris team will likely have its hands full in the early parts of its administration.