Florida demands Biden admin close ‘catch-and-release loophole,’ noting suspected terrorists
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody announced she, along with 27 other states, are urging the Biden administration to make changes to its southern border policies.
The attorney general’s office noted that the Biden administration allowed more than seven million illegal immigrants across the U.S. border, which included 264 “suspected terrorists.”
“Given the massive flood of unvetted migrants into the interior of our country, there is no way to know who is in the U.S. or if they plan to enact terror on Americans,” Moody said.
The coalition of states filed a petition for rulemaking, which demanded the U.S. Department of Homeland Security change its catch-and-release and “unlawful” policies that “have horrendous effects” on the country’s security.
In the petition, the attorney general noted that the Biden administration is releasing migrants into the country under a provision that should apply to migrants “already in the country.”
“It does not apply to aliens caught crossing the border,” the petition said, as the attorneys general asked for the Biden administration to make changes clarifying who that part of the law applies to.
The petition said that U.S. border patrol released 100,585 aliens in August 2023 with expectations that the number will increase, “given DHS’s decision to set release quotas for Border Patrol to meet.”
Moody said the department is giving migrants who were released “under the unlawful practices” a court date that is many years in the future.
“DHS’s unlawful decisions are allowing millions of unauthorized immigrants to remain in the U.S. for 15 years or longer before ever appearing before an immigration judge,” the attorney general’s office said in a press release.
The attorneys general of the following states signed onto Moody’s petition: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia and Wyoming.
