WEBVTT 00:00:01.000 --> 00:00:03.737 Good morning and thank you for joining us this morning. 00:00:03.937 --> 00:00:06.272 To my left is the acting commissioner of U.S. 00:00:06.272 --> 00:00:09.242 Customs and Border Protection, Troy Miller. 00:00:09.309 --> 00:00:14.347 Ricardo Zúñiga, to my right, from the United States Department of State, 00:00:15.415 --> 00:00:17.751 as you know, on Thursday. 00:00:17.984 --> 00:00:21.187 Tomorrow, May 11th, at 11:59 p.m. 00:00:21.187 --> 00:00:25.658 Eastern Time, the Title 42 Public Health Order will terminate. 00:00:26.326 --> 00:00:30.396 At that point, we will once again process people at our southern border 00:00:30.730 --> 00:00:33.366 using our immigration enforcement authorities 00:00:33.600 --> 00:00:36.035 under Title 8 of the United States Code. 00:00:36.769 --> 00:00:40.373 Our overall approach is to build lawful pathways for people 00:00:40.373 --> 00:00:44.244 to come to the United States and to impose tougher consequences 00:00:44.544 --> 00:00:47.814 on those who choose not to use those pathways. 00:00:48.448 --> 00:00:52.752 We are taking this approach within the constraints of a broken immigration system 00:00:52.752 --> 00:00:56.489 that Congress has not fixed for more than two decades. 00:00:56.789 --> 00:01:00.827 And without the resources we need - personnel, facilities, 00:01:01.060 --> 00:01:04.831 transportation, and others that we have requested of Congress 00:01:05.131 --> 00:01:06.799 and that we were not given. 00:01:08.234 --> 00:01:10.837 We have seen the effectiveness of our approach. 00:01:11.104 --> 00:01:16.643 More than 100,000 people from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela 00:01:16.876 --> 00:01:20.647 have arrived lawfully through the pathway we have made available to them. 00:01:21.080 --> 00:01:24.217 And we reduced border encounters from these groups 00:01:24.484 --> 00:01:29.522 by 90% between December of last year and March of this year. 00:01:30.123 --> 00:01:33.393 Our president has led the largest expansion 00:01:33.559 --> 00:01:36.829 of lawful pathways ever. 00:01:36.829 --> 00:01:40.166 At the same time, we are clear eyed about the challenges 00:01:40.166 --> 00:01:43.169 we are likely to face in the days and weeks ahead, 00:01:43.536 --> 00:01:45.938 which have the potential to be very difficult. 00:01:46.873 --> 00:01:49.609 Even after nearly two years of preparation, 00:01:49.742 --> 00:01:53.413 we expect to see large numbers of encounters at our southern border 00:01:53.546 --> 00:01:56.149 in the days and weeks after May 11th. 00:01:56.549 --> 00:02:00.486 We are already seeing high numbers of encounters in certain sectors. 00:02:01.454 --> 00:02:02.288 This places 00:02:02.288 --> 00:02:06.159 an incredible strain on our personnel, our facilities 00:02:06.426 --> 00:02:09.462 and our communities with whom we partner closely. 00:02:10.263 --> 00:02:14.500 Our plan will deliver results, but it will take time for those results 00:02:14.767 --> 00:02:17.336 to be fully realized, and it is essential 00:02:17.703 --> 00:02:19.939 that we all take this into account. 00:02:21.240 --> 00:02:24.577 I cannot overemphasize that our current situation 00:02:24.777 --> 00:02:28.147 is the outcome of Congress leaving a broken, 00:02:28.147 --> 00:02:32.185 outdated immigration system in place for over two decades. 00:02:32.485 --> 00:02:36.155 Despite unanimous agreement that we desperately need 00:02:36.155 --> 00:02:39.158 legislative reform, it is also 00:02:39.158 --> 00:02:42.461 the result of Congress's decision not to provide us 00:02:42.728 --> 00:02:45.798 with the resources we need and that we requested. 00:02:47.266 --> 00:02:49.869 Of our efforts within the constraints of our broken 00:02:49.869 --> 00:02:54.140 immigration system are focused on ensuring that the process is safe, 00:02:54.674 --> 00:02:57.210 orderly and humane, all while 00:02:57.210 --> 00:03:01.013 protecting our dedicated workforce and our communities. 00:03:02.481 --> 00:03:04.350 Let me be clear. 00:03:04.350 --> 00:03:07.687 The lifting of the Title 42 public health order 00:03:08.020 --> 00:03:10.690 does not mean our border is open. 00:03:11.190 --> 00:03:13.459 In fact, it is the contrary. 00:03:14.026 --> 00:03:16.796 Our use of our immigration enforcement authorities 00:03:17.029 --> 00:03:22.034 under Title 8 of the United States Code means tougher consequences 00:03:22.234 --> 00:03:24.770 for people who cross the border illegally. 00:03:26.005 --> 00:03:31.110 Unlike under Title 42, an individual who is removed under Title 00:03:31.110 --> 00:03:36.582 8 is subject to at least a five year bar on reentry into the United States 00:03:36.849 --> 00:03:42.021 and can face criminal prosecution if they attempt to cross again. 00:03:43.456 --> 00:03:46.659 Smugglers have long been hard at work spreading 00:03:46.659 --> 00:03:50.062 false information that the border will be open after May 11th. 00:03:50.830 --> 00:03:52.365 It will not be. 00:03:52.365 --> 00:03:54.700 They are lying to people 00:03:55.367 --> 00:03:58.003 who are thinking of making the journey to our southern border. 00:03:58.237 --> 00:04:01.273 Know this - the smugglers care 00:04:01.273 --> 00:04:04.410 only about profit, not people. 00:04:04.910 --> 00:04:08.347 They do not care about you or your well-being. 00:04:09.014 --> 00:04:11.684 Do not believe their lies. 00:04:12.118 --> 00:04:17.656 Do not risk your life and your life savings only to be removed 00:04:17.656 --> 00:04:22.261 from the United States, if, if, and when you arrive here. 00:04:23.729 --> 00:04:24.697 Today, 00:04:24.797 --> 00:04:29.301 we are beginning a new digital advertising campaign in Central and South America 00:04:29.468 --> 00:04:34.540 to counter the lies of the smugglers with accurate information about U.S. 00:04:34.573 --> 00:04:36.509 immigration laws. 00:04:36.509 --> 00:04:41.180 This campaign adds to our extensive ongoing communications efforts 00:04:41.447 --> 00:04:43.549 in the region. 00:04:43.649 --> 00:04:46.719 As you can see by the images before us 00:04:47.219 --> 00:04:49.421 of removal flights and encounters 00:04:49.688 --> 00:04:53.759 with our Border Patrol agents, we are making it very clear 00:04:54.026 --> 00:04:58.998 that our border is not open, that crossing irregularly is against the law 00:04:59.298 --> 00:05:02.101 and that those who are not eligible for relief 00:05:02.401 --> 00:05:04.436 will be quickly returned. 00:05:05.704 --> 00:05:08.407 Do not listen to the lies of the smugglers. 00:05:08.841 --> 00:05:11.343 This is what will happen to you. 00:05:11.343 --> 00:05:13.779 You will be returned. 00:05:13.779 --> 00:05:17.416 Today alongside the Department of Justice, 00:05:17.416 --> 00:05:22.988 we are finalizing a new rule to encourage individuals to use available, 00:05:23.288 --> 00:05:28.394 lawful, safe and orderly pathways to enter the United States. 00:05:29.128 --> 00:05:33.899 The rule presumes that those who do not use lawful pathways to enter 00:05:33.899 --> 00:05:37.269 the United States are ineligible for asylum. 00:05:37.770 --> 00:05:42.041 It allows the United States, it allows us to remove individuals 00:05:42.207 --> 00:05:45.044 who do not establish a reasonable fear 00:05:45.044 --> 00:05:48.047 of persecution in the country of removal. 00:05:49.181 --> 00:05:50.616 Non-citizens can 00:05:50.616 --> 00:05:54.386 rebut this presumption only in very limited circumstances. 00:05:54.553 --> 00:05:57.489 For example, if they have used our lawful 00:05:57.489 --> 00:06:02.694 pathways or sought, or sought asylum or protection in another country 00:06:02.828 --> 00:06:05.998 through which they have traveled and were denied. 00:06:07.266 --> 00:06:09.067 This rule goes into effect 00:06:09.067 --> 00:06:12.271 once the Title 42 Public Health Order terminates. 00:06:12.404 --> 00:06:16.208 Tomorrow, on Thursday at 11:59 p.m. 00:06:16.542 --> 00:06:18.710 Eastern Time. 00:06:19.378 --> 00:06:20.646 What I have just 00:06:20.646 --> 00:06:23.415 described are only a few elements 00:06:23.682 --> 00:06:27.352 of an expansive effort that began in 2021 00:06:27.786 --> 00:06:32.057 to prepare for this transition from the Title 42 Public Health Authority 00:06:32.357 --> 00:06:35.894 to our tougher immigration enforcement authorities. 00:06:36.862 --> 00:06:39.865 In addition to obtaining the first increase in Border 00:06:39.865 --> 00:06:45.404 Patrol agent hiring in over a decade, the first in over a decade, 00:06:45.671 --> 00:06:48.941 we are in the process of surging personnel to the border, 00:06:49.207 --> 00:06:52.044 including more than 1400 00:06:52.044 --> 00:06:55.847 DHS personnel, 1000 processing coordinators, 00:06:56.181 --> 00:07:00.719 and an additional 1500 Department of Defense personnel. 00:07:01.486 --> 00:07:05.524 All of these individuals will allow our law enforcement officers 00:07:05.724 --> 00:07:09.394 to stay in the field and focus on their critical mission. 00:07:10.729 --> 00:07:11.063 We are 00:07:11.063 --> 00:07:14.166 delivering on tougher consequences for unlawful entry, 00:07:14.533 --> 00:07:17.569 including the return, removal, and expulsion 00:07:17.803 --> 00:07:20.772 of more than 665,000 people 00:07:21.039 --> 00:07:23.875 during the first half of this fiscal year. 00:07:24.376 --> 00:07:27.746 We are conducting dozens of removal flights per week 00:07:27.746 --> 00:07:31.650 and we continue to increase our removal flight capability. 00:07:32.384 --> 00:07:37.122 We are increasing our efficiency and reducing processing times at the border. 00:07:37.522 --> 00:07:42.060 We launched the CBP One app, which, in its four first 00:07:42.060 --> 00:07:45.397 four months, helped 83,000 00:07:45.397 --> 00:07:48.567 individuals schedule an appointment at a port of entry 00:07:48.800 --> 00:07:52.671 and we are taking steps to expand available appointments. 00:07:53.371 --> 00:07:56.808 We bolster the capacity of local governments and NGOs. 00:07:57.209 --> 00:07:59.878 Just last week we announced the distribution 00:07:59.878 --> 00:08:04.549 of an additional $332 million to support communities 00:08:04.549 --> 00:08:08.053 along the southern border and in the interior of our country. 00:08:09.354 --> 00:08:13.758 We are leading an unprecedented law enforcement disruption campaign 00:08:13.992 --> 00:08:17.295 that has led to the arrest of nearly 10,000 smugglers 00:08:17.596 --> 00:08:20.398 who profit from vulnerable immigrants. 00:08:21.099 --> 00:08:25.604 Knowing that this is a regional challenge that requires a regional solution, 00:08:25.937 --> 00:08:29.441 we continue to work with countries throughout the Americas 00:08:29.808 --> 00:08:32.010 to deter irregular migration. 00:08:32.544 --> 00:08:37.282 This includes a coordinated campaign with Colombia and Panama to prevent 00:08:37.282 --> 00:08:40.218 individuals from following ruthless smugglers 00:08:40.585 --> 00:08:43.788 into the very dangerous Darién. 00:08:43.888 --> 00:08:49.294 And we are working with our partners in Mexico regularly on a range of issues. 00:08:51.496 --> 00:08:53.999 We are a nation of immigrants. 00:08:54.633 --> 00:08:57.569 We are also a nation of laws. 00:08:58.303 --> 00:09:01.573 Our immigration laws today are outdated. 00:09:02.140 --> 00:09:05.777 The solutions we are implementing are the best available 00:09:06.111 --> 00:09:08.680 within our current legal authority. 00:09:09.114 --> 00:09:13.351 But they are short term solutions to a decades old problem. 00:09:14.252 --> 00:09:16.855 The kind of migration we continue 00:09:16.855 --> 00:09:19.691 to see today requires more resources. 00:09:20.158 --> 00:09:23.595 Resources we have requested and have not received. 00:09:23.695 --> 00:09:27.999 Clearer authority and modernized processes 00:09:28.400 --> 00:09:31.069 that only Congress can deliver. 00:09:31.469 --> 00:09:33.872 We urge it to do so. 00:09:35.140 --> 00:09:36.808 now. I think we'll take some questions. 00:09:36.808 --> 00:09:39.444 Questions? Nick go ahead. 00:09:39.511 --> 00:09:40.278 Thank you, Mr. 00:09:40.278 --> 00:09:40.979 Secretary. 00:09:40.979 --> 00:09:46.217 We’ve just seen some images from Texas showing that Texas National Guard and DPS 00:09:46.217 --> 00:09:48.720 physically blocking migrants from 00:09:49.587 --> 00:09:52.423 climbing up the riverbanks and accessing U.S. 00:09:52.423 --> 00:09:53.158 soil. 00:09:53.158 --> 00:09:56.628 Does the Department believe that that’s a legal enforcement 00:09:56.628 --> 00:09:59.597 posture by the state of Texas? 00:09:59.697 --> 00:10:03.801 Nick, I’m going to leave it to our Department of Justice to just 00:10:03.801 --> 00:10:08.940 speak to the lawfulness, or lack thereof, of those actions. 00:10:09.207 --> 00:10:12.677 I will tell you this, that our Border 00:10:12.677 --> 00:10:17.649 Patrol Agents and our officers work very closely 00:10:17.815 --> 00:10:21.786 with the Department of Public Safety in Texas on the ground, 00:10:21.853 --> 00:10:25.590 when it is a coordinated and collaborative effort. 00:10:25.857 --> 00:10:30.528 It is essential that law enforcement work as one team 00:10:30.728 --> 00:10:34.766 to address the challenge of the Southern Border. 00:10:34.832 --> 00:10:35.867 Quinn, go ahead. 00:10:35.900 --> 00:10:37.702 Thank you, Mr. Secretary. 00:10:37.702 --> 00:10:38.937 How many credible fear 00:10:38.937 --> 00:10:42.173 screening interviews do you expect to conduct on a daily basis? 00:10:42.173 --> 00:10:44.442 And are you confident that we’ll keep up 00:10:44.442 --> 00:10:47.845 with the number of apprehensions you are seeing and expect to see? 00:10:47.845 --> 00:10:50.848 We are, of the Department 00:10:50.848 --> 00:10:54.485 of Homeland Security, with one of our agencies, U.S. 00:10:54.485 --> 00:10:59.924 Citizenship and Immigration Services, is indeed surging asylum officers 00:11:00.291 --> 00:11:05.630 to Border Patrol facilities as well as to Immigration and Customs 00:11:05.630 --> 00:11:10.334 Enforcement detention facilities to conduct an unprecedented number 00:11:10.535 --> 00:11:14.172 of credible fear screenings under the asylum rule 00:11:14.405 --> 00:11:19.377 that is going to be implemented beginning upon the end of Title 42. 00:11:19.577 --> 00:11:19.644 We are, of the Department of Homeland Security, with one of our agencies, U.S. 00:11:19.644 --> 00:11:19.711 Citizenship and Immigration Services, is indeed surging asylum officers 00:11:19.711 --> 00:11:19.777 to Border Patrol facilities as well as to Immigration and Customs 00:11:19.777 --> 00:11:19.811 Enforcement detention facilities to conduct an unprecedented 00:11:19.811 --> 00:11:19.844 number of credible fear screenings under the asylum rule 00:11:19.844 --> 00:11:19.911 that is going to be implemented beginning upon the end of Title 42. 00:11:19.911 --> 00:11:23.314 We are surging approximately 1,000 00:11:23.381 --> 00:11:26.584 or more asylum officers for that purpose. 00:11:26.851 --> 00:11:29.687 It is very important to note 00:11:29.687 --> 00:11:32.223 that the asylum rule will take effect. 00:11:32.223 --> 00:11:36.594 If individuals do not access their lawful pathways, the pathways 00:11:37.295 --> 00:11:39.831 that we have made available to them, 00:11:39.831 --> 00:11:43.234 they will face a rebuttable presumption. 00:11:43.234 --> 00:11:46.971 But a presumption of ineligibility for asylum, 00:11:47.205 --> 00:11:49.640 they will have to meet a higher bar. 00:11:50.041 --> 00:11:54.245 This President, our President has led the expansion 00:11:54.245 --> 00:11:58.983 of lawful pathways more than anyone else in our history. 00:12:00.918 --> 00:12:04.889 Yes, uh, Secretary, we have read that the Administration 00:12:04.889 --> 00:12:09.727 is considering releasing migrants after they’re being carefully vetted. 00:12:09.727 --> 00:12:13.831 And we just have some teams in El Paso yesterday that observed some migrants 00:12:13.831 --> 00:12:16.133 being vetted for an hour and then afterwards being released 00:12:16.567 --> 00:12:18.469 with a permit to stay in the country for a year. 00:12:18.469 --> 00:12:22.773 I wonder how that process is being done and how secure you are 00:12:22.773 --> 00:12:25.876 all those all those vettings taking place on the border? 00:12:25.977 --> 00:12:27.178 So, U.S. 00:12:27.178 --> 00:12:32.083 Customs and Border Protection screens and vets individuals whom we encounter. 00:12:32.149 --> 00:12:37.555 Individuals – the vast majority of individuals will be returned, 00:12:37.688 --> 00:12:41.392 those who do not qualify from Border Patrol stations 00:12:41.626 --> 00:12:45.229 or Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facilities. 00:12:46.130 --> 00:12:48.265 We often, as has 00:12:48.265 --> 00:12:51.602 every administration, release individuals 00:12:52.069 --> 00:12:56.340 into immigration enforcement proceedings, and those individuals 00:12:56.340 --> 00:13:00.277 if they do not qualify for relief will be removed. 00:13:00.678 --> 00:13:04.281 We screen and vet individuals whom we encounter. 00:13:04.749 --> 00:13:09.220 Michelle Obama promised to build an immigration system based on every 00:13:10.221 --> 00:13:13.691 real for America. May. 00:13:14.458 --> 00:13:14.992 Thank you, Mr. 00:13:14.992 --> 00:13:15.993 Secretary. 00:13:16.227 --> 00:13:19.930 Just to follow up on the credible fear question, can you give us an idea 00:13:19.930 --> 00:13:24.168 of what percentage of migrants you think will be receiving those screenings? 00:13:24.168 --> 00:13:26.303 Is it almost, half, some? 00:13:26.704 --> 00:13:30.007 And can you also speak to the agreement with Mexico? 00:13:30.007 --> 00:13:33.310 I know you guys have specifically said they’re planning to take back people 00:13:33.310 --> 00:13:35.579 from the four nationalities: the Cubans, Venezuelans, 00:13:35.679 --> 00:13:38.616 Nicaraguan, and Haitians, but is there a possibility 00:13:38.616 --> 00:13:40.851 that they would take back any other nationalities as well? 00:13:42.019 --> 00:13:43.020 Michelle, 00:13:45.156 --> 00:13:47.825 let me – let me break it down a little bit. 00:13:48.826 --> 00:13:51.529 We are giving the option 00:13:51.629 --> 00:13:58.135 to individuals, who are in our custody, the option of voluntarily 00:13:58.135 --> 00:14:02.940 returning to the country from which they came. 00:14:02.940 --> 00:14:05.643 Because of the consequence 00:14:06.343 --> 00:14:12.049 of a removal, people have to understand that under Title 8 of the United States 00:14:12.049 --> 00:14:15.819 Code, when one is removed, one faces a 00:14:15.819 --> 00:14:18.722 – at least a five-year bar to reentry. 00:14:18.923 --> 00:14:23.827 And so we will give people an opportunity to avoid that 00:14:23.827 --> 00:14:27.598 tougher consequence by voluntarily returning. 00:14:27.665 --> 00:14:30.401 If they do not take that option 00:14:31.101 --> 00:14:34.672 and they do not claim fear, they will be removed immediately. 00:14:35.306 --> 00:14:41.011 If they do claim fear, they will encounter a higher threshold, under our asylum 00:14:41.011 --> 00:14:45.115 rule, unless they have accessed our lawful pathways 00:14:45.449 --> 00:14:48.819 or sought relief in another country and have been denied. 00:14:49.153 --> 00:14:52.589 We are surging as I mentioned Michelle, asylum officers 00:14:52.756 --> 00:14:56.727 to ensure that that screening process, that credible fear screening 00:14:56.727 --> 00:14:59.963 process, is done fairly, 00:15:00.030 --> 00:15:03.967 with access to counsel, but expeditiously. 00:15:03.967 --> 00:15:06.437 How do Americans gain from an immigration pact? 00:15:06.437 --> 00:15:07.404 Your opening start? 00:15:07.404 --> 00:15:11.241 I mean, nobody ever asked this question do Americans gain from all the immigrants 00:15:11.241 --> 00:15:14.978 you’re bringing into the country that drive down wages, they push up prices? 00:15:15.079 --> 00:15:21.585 Sir, we are a nation of immigrants, and we are a nation of laws. 00:15:21.852 --> 00:15:25.589 Individuals who qualify for relief under our laws 00:15:25.823 --> 00:15:28.192 have a basis to remain in the United States. 00:15:28.459 --> 00:15:32.863 The contributions of immigrants to this country is quite clear. 00:15:33.297 --> 00:15:35.332 Thank you, next to Suzanne. 00:15:35.399 --> 00:15:37.601 Thank you. Um, I – good Morning. 00:15:37.601 --> 00:15:41.405 Do you guys need to be requesting supplemental funding for the border 00:15:41.405 --> 00:15:44.041 from Congress? Last I’ve heard, there hadn’t been a request made. 00:15:44.374 --> 00:15:46.910 If you do anticipate it, like what type of criteria would, 00:15:47.110 --> 00:15:50.047 you know, trigger that kind of request from you guys? 00:15:50.113 --> 00:15:50.848 In December 00:15:52.082 --> 00:15:54.284 of this past year, 00:15:54.284 --> 00:15:56.853 we sought more than $4 billion 00:15:57.154 --> 00:16:03.060 in funding to address our resource needs, because we are operating within 00:16:03.493 --> 00:16:07.030 an entirely broken immigration system, and that is something 00:16:07.030 --> 00:16:08.999 about which there is unanimity. 00:16:08.999 --> 00:16:13.203 We did not receive the funding that we requested. 00:16:13.270 --> 00:16:16.406 We received approximately half 00:16:16.406 --> 00:16:19.343 of what we requested and half of what we needed, 00:16:19.543 --> 00:16:22.679 which is why we are encountering some of the challenges. 00:16:23.447 --> 00:16:27.117 We have sought a reprogramming, 00:16:27.184 --> 00:16:30.020 and we have communicated to Congress 00:16:30.187 --> 00:16:34.291 that that reprogramming is a fraction of what we ultimately need. 00:16:34.358 --> 00:16:37.294 We have time for one more, Rob... 00:16:37.294 --> 00:16:38.695 I’m so sorry. 00:16:38.695 --> 00:16:41.698 Gary Grumbach from NBC News, you’ve mentioned some of the immigration 00:16:41.698 --> 00:16:42.933 proceedings to Pedro. 00:16:42.933 --> 00:16:46.169 Are you prepared to start releasing migrants into the U.S. 00:16:46.169 --> 00:16:50.040 without court dates, and without a way to track them, to reduce overcrowding? 00:16:50.340 --> 00:16:56.279 So, when like other administrations, when we release individuals, 00:16:57.280 --> 00:17:00.083 we release them on conditions, 00:17:00.150 --> 00:17:04.454 and their compliance with those conditions is absolutely necessary. 00:17:04.688 --> 00:17:09.259 And if they fail to comply, we will seek to apprehend them and remove them. 00:17:09.793 --> 00:17:13.830 They are ultimately in immigration enforcement proceedings. 00:17:14.030 --> 00:17:17.334 But what we are speaking of, what you are inquiring of, 00:17:17.400 --> 00:17:22.539 is a minor, is a fraction of the people that we encounter. 00:17:22.806 --> 00:17:26.710 In fact, the vast majority will be addressed 00:17:27.177 --> 00:17:31.081 in our Border Patrol facilities and our ICE detention facilities. 00:17:31.414 --> 00:17:33.950 Is that not the message though, that the border is open then to migrants? 00:17:34.050 --> 00:17:36.186 Oh, absolutely, absolutely not. 00:17:36.186 --> 00:17:40.257 And I think you can ask the approximately 1.4 million people 00:17:40.590 --> 00:17:43.059 who were expelled, returned, or removed 00:17:43.927 --> 00:17:46.129 from the United States this past year. 00:17:47.030 --> 00:17:48.131 That it's a change and. 00:17:48.131 --> 00:17:50.100 Not a crisis. Anything else, just consider this. 00:17:50.100 --> 00:17:51.534 Is this now a crisis? 00:17:51.534 --> 00:17:54.704 I'm sorry, if you wanted to add anything else on regional processing centers. 00:17:54.704 --> 00:17:55.472 If not, we'll. 00:17:57.107 --> 00:18:00.076 Let me just answer Marsha’s question, 00:18:00.543 --> 00:18:03.747 if I may, with respect to regional processing centers. 00:18:04.180 --> 00:18:09.019 They are a powerful example of what I expressed earlier, 00:18:09.419 --> 00:18:12.522 which is that our President has led the expansion 00:18:12.522 --> 00:18:16.726 of lawful pathways more than anyone preceding him. 00:18:16.993 --> 00:18:21.865 The regional processing centers are an extraordinary example of that leadership. 00:18:22.165 --> 00:18:25.335 These are places where we feel 00:18:26.069 --> 00:18:29.706 a humanitarian, as well as the security imperative, 00:18:29.939 --> 00:18:34.110 to meet people where they are, to cut the smugglers out, 00:18:34.177 --> 00:18:37.981 and to provide them with a safe and orderly way 00:18:37.981 --> 00:18:41.785 to arrive in the United States if they qualify for relief. 00:18:42.118 --> 00:18:46.923 We are surging our personnel in close partnership with the Department of State, 00:18:47.190 --> 00:18:49.859 in close partnership with countries in the region. 00:18:50.794 --> 00:18:55.265 We require a regional response to what is a regional challenge. 00:18:55.698 --> 00:19:00.270 We will, in these regional processing centers, screen individuals 00:19:00.870 --> 00:19:06.743 to determine whether they are eligible for refugee status in the United States. 00:19:06.743 --> 00:19:11.614 Whether they qualify for what we are expanding in our family 00:19:11.614 --> 00:19:15.919 reunification programs, or whether on an individualized basis, 00:19:16.152 --> 00:19:19.088 on a case-by-case basis – as the law requires 00:19:19.322 --> 00:19:23.092 –whether they are eligible for other humanitarian relief. 00:19:23.293 --> 00:19:25.161 That is what we are doing. 00:19:25.161 --> 00:19:28.531 The phenomenon of migration 00:19:28.865 --> 00:19:32.535 is different than it was 10-12 years ago. 00:19:32.869 --> 00:19:38.274 We are seeing an unprecedented level of migration throughout the hemisphere. 00:19:38.508 --> 00:19:42.712 I believe there are approximately 20 million displaced people 00:19:42.979 --> 00:19:45.148 in our hemisphere. 00:19:45.148 --> 00:19:47.417 In addition, the smugglers 00:19:47.684 --> 00:19:50.119 control the migratory paths. 00:19:50.620 --> 00:19:53.556 We will cut the smugglers out. 00:19:53.890 --> 00:19:56.893 We will reach qualifying individuals 00:19:57.160 --> 00:20:01.965 where they are and provide them with a safe and orderly pathway. 00:20:01.965 --> 00:20:07.403 If they arrive at our Southern Border, they will meet consequences. 00:20:07.737 --> 00:20:13.509 We urge migrants, once again, not to believe the smugglers 00:20:13.509 --> 00:20:17.580 who are lying to them solely to make a profit. 00:20:18.081 --> 00:20:22.618 We are building lawful pathways for you to come to the United States. 00:20:22.952 --> 00:20:26.322 Do not place your life and your life savings 00:20:26.522 --> 00:20:29.759 in the hands of ruthless organizations. 00:20:29.826 --> 00:20:30.626 Thank you very much.