Panamanian Foreign Minister: 60,000 Additional Haitian Migrants Headed to U.S. Border

Panama’s foreign minister recently warned the United States that as many as 60,000 migrants, mostly Haitians who were living in Central and South America, are headed to the U.S.-Mexico border.

This surge is four times the number of migrants who camped out under the Del Rio International Bridge during the first surge of Haitians. In total, 30,000 migrants came to Del Rio, Texas, between September 9 and September 24, of whom at least 12,000 were released into the United States.

In September, the Panamanian government estimated that 27,000 migrants had taken the treacherous journey through the Darien Gap, the geographic region between Central and South America. This is more than all of 2019. Furthermore, so far, in 2021, 85,000 migrants have made their way into Panama.

If you find it odd to see foreign nationals from the Caribbean migrating through South America, you would be right. Most of these migrants have not lived in Haiti for many years. As a consequence of the 2010 earthquake, many of these Haitians traveled to Brazil and Chile, where they have been residing for years. Contrary to the mainstream media narrative, the current conditions in Haiti are not the driving factor behind the migrant border crisis.

According to interviews NPR conducted with Haitian migrants, many of them believe now is a good time to migrate to the United States, given that President Biden has opened up the border. One migrant named Noel, who spent the last five years working in Brazil, said, “Donald Trump lost the election so I’m giving it a try.”

Make no mistake; foreign nationals notice when the president of the United States eases border restrictions and promises mass amnesty to illegal aliens. Rather than re-implement the successful Trump-era immigration policies, President Biden has decided to pull demoralized and overworked Border Patrol agents from the border to process recent Haitian migrants, leaving large portions unsecured.

Fortunately, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) is fully committed to doing what the federal government is not. The governor blasted the Biden administration, saying, “Texas National Guard is gearing up at the border for increased caravans attempting to cross the border caused by Biden’s open border policy. They are working with the Texas Dept. of Public Safety [DPS] to seal surge locations at the border & arrest trespassers.”

This isn’t the first time Texas has been forced to step up to the plate. During the first surge, Gov. Abbott directed the Texas National Guard and DPS to create a barrier with their patrol vehicles and Humvees to prevent further unlawful entries.

However, as conditions worsen, Texas cannot continue carrying the weight of the Biden administration’s destructive policies. In addition to the 60,000 migrants, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas warned that as many as 400,000 illegal border crossings might occur in October if Title 42, a Trump-era public health order that expels migrants back to their home countries, is completely rescinded. Of course, that decision is largely in his hands.

The only way to end this self-inflicted border crisis perpetrated by the Biden administration is to stop incentivizing illegal immigration. Until the rule of law is restored, economic migrants will continue taking advantage of our porous borders.