Because America just isn’t generous enough with giving illegals access to government services and benefits, the Biden administration is aiming to make it easier.
The plan is simple. Provide migrants crossing the border illegally with an identification card that they can use when applying for or accessing government benefits. According to reports from Axios, illegals crossing the border lacking identification makes life harder for border agents and social workers trying to process them into the system.
Just recently, Mayor Adams in New York and Mayor Bowser in DC, both Democrats, called on the Biden administration to slow the tide of illegal entries due to overwhelmed city homeless shelters.
The result? A Biden administration plan to hand out I.D. cards to anyone crossing the border, a move destined to encourage more, not less, illegal immigration:
The Biden administration plans to test providing temporary I.D. cards to unauthorized immigrants awaiting a final decision on their cases, according to two government sources familiar with the planning.
Why it matters: Recent border crossers and other unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. often do not have I.D.s , making it more difficult to access housing, healthcare, transportation and other benefits.
Officials are considering a pilot program to relieve some of those burdens, while also incentivizing more frequent communication with law enforcement throughout the complicated court process, the sources said.
In other words, people crossing the border illegally have a difficult time fitting into their new surroundings and applying for assistance programs that include housing, healthcare, and transportation.
In the midst of record inflation and a government drowning in debt, making it easier for non-citizens to access welfare programs seems like a terrible plan to run on in the midterms.
Part of the haste involves trying to enact the I.D. card program before Republicans are expected to take over the House in November.
More details from Axios on how the cards would work in a practical sense:
Generally, I.D. cards would be provided to migrants not in detention centers who illegally cross the U.S.-Mexico border or others without legal status going through the lengthy immigration or removal court processes.
The card would likely include a QR code that would provide the enrollee access to court information and documents via an app, the sources said. This could potentially lessen the mounting number of FOIA requests for information about immigration cases.
It would also allow unauthorized immigrants such as asylum seekers to prove — if stopped by authorities — they are already in the immigration system.
Ideally, it would also incentivize unauthorized immigrants to provide accurate information about their location and virtually check-in more often with law enforcement —rather than having to wait in line at a physical ICE office.
Providing I.D. cards, even though they’re considered “temporary,” seems like a step closer to some sort of amnesty or basically giving anyone crossing the border illegally access to the same things American citizens have.
For municipalities already stressed with their social programs, cardholders will be more incentivized to demand more services since the federal government will be helping facilitate their application and legitimize their presence in the country.
The cards will include a photo and other identifiable information making it more and more likely that states will end up recognizing the card as a true form of I.D. for any and all state services as well.
The U.S. southern border remains a hot mess with the Biden administration doing everything it can to incentivize migrants to cross the border rather than truly trying to secure it. Remember when Vice President Kamala Harris was sent to “clean up” the border? That was a true embarrassment.
The border remains a problem for Biden as states like Texas and Arizona fight to maintain sovereignty and safety along border counties.
The federal government handing out I.D. cards to make life easier for illegal aliens seems like the wrong move if you’re goal is to cut down on border crossings.
