GOP Lawmakers Say China Must Be Punished Over Soaring Illegal Immigrants; Chinese Illegal Immigrants are Crossing Into US in Unprecedented Numbers

GOP lawmakers say China must be punished over soaring illegal immigrants:

Republican House members prodded the Biden administration Thursday to slap sanctions on China for refusing to cooperate in taking back its illegal immigrants, saying the U.S. should start refusing to dole out visas to would-be Chinese migrants.

The letter, first obtained by The Washington Times and led by Rep. Thomas Tiffany of Wisconsin, pointed to a rising tide of migrants from China who are showing up at the U.S.-Mexico border.

American officials say China is generally bad about taking back nationals entering illegally, so they are caught and released into the U.S. with little chance of being ousted.

The U.S. even struggles to send back serious criminals.

“This is something that the migrants and smugglers no doubt understand and helps explain the premium Chinese migrants are paying to make the dangerous trip,” Mr. Tiffany wrote with three Republican colleagues.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has long labeled China a “recalcitrant” country in taking back its deportees.

Beijing made its refusal explicit last summer after then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi traveled to Taiwan. China’s foreign affairs ministry released a list of retaliatory steps, one of which was “suspending China-U.S. cooperation on the repatriation of illegal immigrants.”

Mr. Tiffany and his colleagues said U.S. law calls for sanctions to be imposed on countries that refuse that cooperation. Section 243(d) of the Immigration and Nationality Act says that when the homeland security secretary submits a notice that a country is remiss, the State Department shall cut off visas.

When the law was triggered in the past, visas were usually denied only to government officials and their families. The law allows for a categorical ban. —>READ MORE HERE

Chinese illegal immigrants are crossing into US in unprecedented numbers:

Chinese nationals are crossing the U.S.-Mexico border into the U.S. in unprecedented numbers this year, with the first few months of FY 2023 already eclipsing the total for 2022.

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reports that just under 2,000 Chinese nationals crossed the border in FY 2022, but the first few months of FY 2023 have already seen 4,300 encounters, according to federal data.

The wave of Chinese migrants comes as the country bristles against Chinese President Xi Jinping’s continued crackdown on freedoms. China saw a large wave of protests in recent months following Xi’s widespread COVID-19 lockdowns.

“So the word is out, right?,” Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, D-Texas, told Axios. “If you can get to our southern border, you have a pretty good shot at getting in, and it has changed the demographics.”

Republicans have accused President Biden of refusing to enforce U.S. border policies, which they argue sends the message to other migrants that the U.S. border is open. —>READ MORE HERE

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