The Biden administration, already facing an increase in border crossings, is setting plans in motion to manage an anticipated influx of migrants at the US-Mexico border when a Covid-era border restriction, known as Title 42, ends next week, sources tell CNN.
On May 11, when the coronavirus public health emergency ends, the Title 42 authority, which has been the primary border enforcement tool since March 2020, will expire, meaning border officials will no longer be able to quickly expel certain migrants.
The handling of the US southern border has dogged Joe Biden over the course of his presidency, starting with an influx of unaccompanied migrant children just weeks into his administration and followed by images of thousands of primarily Haitian migrants gathered under a bridge along the Texas-Mexico border.
The issue has opened Biden up to criticism from Republicans who have hammered the administration and are already wielding the issue to counter the president in the upcoming election. It’s also stoked tensions with New York City Mayor Eric Adams who has urged the administration to do more to stem the flow of migration amid an increase of arrivals to his city.
When Title 42 lifts, US immigration authorities will return to decades-old protocols at a time of unprecedented mass migration in the Western hemisphere, raising concerns within the Biden administration about a surge in the immediate aftermath of authority ending.
Officials have already seen an uptick in migrants crossing the US-Mexico border in anticipation of the expiration of Title 42. Daily encounters have steadily climbed in recent days, now hovering around 7,500 and expected to rise in the coming weeks, according to a Homeland Security official.
As of Tuesday morning, there were more than 22,000 migrants in US Customs and Border Protection custody, marking an increase from over the…
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