Jefferson Reporter

U.S. Senators Katie Britt (R-Ala.) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas), along with 15 of their Senate colleagues, have addressed a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, urging them to terminate the Biden-Harris Administration’s parole program for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans (CHNV). The Senators cited reports of widespread fraud and abuse as reasons for deeming the program unlawful.

The letter asserts that the CHNV program contravenes federal law and enumerates its failures, including incentivizing illegal migration, allowing gang members and violent criminals into the country, and admitting tens of thousands of aliens based on fraudulent applications. The Senators are calling for an immediate end to the CHNV parole program, enhanced border security and immigration enforcement, a comprehensive investigation into the program's shortcomings, and a restoration of congressional oversight.

"We write to you with urgent and serious concerns regarding the Cuba-Haiti-Nicaragua-Venezuela (CHNV) Parole Program," stated the Senators. "Between January 2023 and July 2024, this program facilitated the entry of approximately 520,000 illegal aliens via commercial air travel." They further noted that an internal U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) report obtained by the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) revealed significant flaws jeopardizing national security and public safety.

In response to mounting evidence and criticism, the Biden administration temporarily halted the CHNV Parole Program in mid-July for review but resumed it after less than six weeks with new requirements for sponsors. These include submitting fingerprints for vetting processes and more thorough reviews of financial and criminal records.

“These stop-gap marginal improvements do not solve the fundamental fraud, failure, and illegality of the CHNV program," continued the Senators. "This fundamentally-flawed program must be permanently dismantled... Our nation’s security and the safety of our citizens demand that we act decisively."

The letter was also signed by Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.), and Tim Scott (R-S.C.).

Senator Britt has co-sponsored Senator Grassley’s Immigration Parole Reform Act of 2023 to address parole abuse. She is also a co-sponsor of Senator Cruz’s Secure the Border Act aimed at limiting DHS' authority to grant parole to illegal aliens unilaterally.

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