Now that illegal immigration and our wide open southern border has been noticed by just about everyone in the country, suddenly there are random articles here and there about U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deportations. It’s an election year, you know, and the incumbent is the one who intentionally opened the border.

It’s election year posturing. When Biden took office, he said that he was freezing deportations. With immigration as a top issue for voters, right up there with the economy in most polls, obviously it has become pertinent for the Biden administration to announce that ICE is doing its job. Apparently, Biden has thawed out ICE’s marching orders. Migrant flights have commenced.

According to the press release, “ICE does not confirm or discuss future or pending transportation operations.” Is that supposed to reassure voters that the agency has been doing the work all along but just not being transparent about it? Color me skeptical but transparency is an issue with this administration. Biden said he would have the most transparent administration ever but that was a lie. His administration has been anything but transparent. So, now that a press release has been posted on the website, the migrant flights leading up to January 19 have been confirmed.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), working in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), facilitated removal flights, including single adults and family units to Central America, Ecuador, Haiti, Peru and Venezuela, Jan. 15 – 19. If a noncitizen arrives and has no legal basis to remain in the United States they will be processed and removed quickly, consistent with U.S. law.

Since May 12 through January 10, DHS has removed or returned over 495,000 individuals, the vast majority of whom crossed the Southwest Border, including more than 83,000 individual family members. Through the end of 2023, removals and returns exceeds the number of removals and returns in each full fiscal year from 2015-2019. Daily removals and enforcement returns are nearly double what they were compared to the pre-pandemic average (2014-2019).

In keeping with standard practice, the United States ensures that all noncitizens without a legal basis to remain in the United States are properly screened for valid protection claims and withholding of removal in accordance with our laws and U.S. international obligations. This applies to all noncitizens, regardless of nationality, to ensure the orderly and humane processing, transfer, and removal of single adults and family units.

Noncitizens placed into removal proceedings present their claims for relief or protection from removal before immigration judges in the immigration courts, which are administered by the Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review. Due to operational security reasons, ICE does not confirm or discuss future or pending transportation operations.

ICE Air Operations facilitates the transfer and removal of noncitizens, including family units, via commercial airlines and chartered flights in support of ICE field offices and other DHS initiatives. In fiscal year 2023, ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations conducted 142,580 removals and 62,545 Title 42 expulsions to more than 170 countries worldwide.

That text is a little long but the words in it are important. Did you notice that the number of releases from May 12, 2023 through January 10, 2024 are compared to 2015 -2019? That’s right, the Trump years. The problem with doing that in order to diss Trump is that the numbers were smaller during Trump’s term. He secured the border as well as could be expected. There were less illegals to process and remove.

Just remember, this is a political exercise for Biden’s re-election campaign. It isn’t because Biden suddenly wants a secure border and ordered ICE to do its job. Nope. This is for the sake of the press releases.

Touting the removal or return of 495,000 individuals is a drop in the bucket compared to the 8 – 10 million illegals who have crossed the border during Biden’s term in office. It’s better than nothing but in the grand scheme of things, it’s not so impressive.

DHS was busy updating ICE’s website with deportation stories. Could it be because stories of illegal aliens murdering Americans or committing other crimes have been in the news? What about illegals who have been released by feckless prosecutors back into society? Perish the thought.

Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Houston, with assistance from ERO Mexico and the Security Alliance for Fugitive Enforcement (SAFE) Task Force, removed Cruz Aranda-Garcia, a 38-year-old unlawfully present Mexican national, from the United States Jan. 18. Aranda-Garcia is wanted in Mexico for attempted homicide.

Deportation officers from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) transported Aranda-Garcia from the Montgomery Processing Center in Conroe to the Juarez-Lincoln Bridge in Laredo. Upon arrival, he was transferred into the custody of Mexican law enforcement authorities.

His first illegal entry into the United States dates back to 2003. He was apprehended again in 2019.

Aranda-Garcia first illegally entered the United States on Nov. 11, 2003, near Brownsville. He was immediately apprehended by the U.S. Border Patrol and voluntarily returned to Mexico. On Nov. 29, 2019, Aranda-Garcia illegally reentered the United States near Laredo. That same day, he was apprehended by Border Patrol officers near Cotulla and transferred into the custody of the Harris County Sheriff’s Office pursuant to a criminal warrant for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

On May 7, 2021, the 351st Harris County District Court convicted Aranda-Garcia of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and he was sentenced to four years in state prison. On June 4, 2021, ERO Houston lodged an immigration detainer for Aranda-Garcia with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

On Dec. 8, 2023, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice transferred Aranda-Garcia into ERO Houston custody, and he was detained at the Montgomery Processing Center in Conroe pending disposition of his immigration proceedings. On Jan. 4, 2024, an immigration judge with the Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review ordered Aranda-Garcia removed to Mexico. ERO Houston immigration officers carried out that order and removed Aranda-Garcia to Mexico Jan. 18.

That’s just one example of a criminal illegal alien. He not only violated U.S. laws by coming into the country illegally but he was a violent criminal. What are the chances he stays in Mexico? Yeah. Slim to none with Biden’s welcome mat in place.

The Biden border crisis has morphed into such a catastrophe that I don’t think a few deportation stories here and there are going to move the needle on Biden’s historically low poll numbers. Unless and until he secures the border, nothing changes.

ICE, with @DHSgov & @CBP, facilitated multiple removal flights—including single adults and family units—to Central America, Ecuador, Haiti, Peru and Venezuela Jan. 15-19 as part of dozens of routine ICE removal flights conducted around the world ▶️ https://t.co/QC3F60uX9j pic.twitter.com/G98ttBioZl

— ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (@ICEgovERO) January 20, 2024