Martha’s Vineyard Chamber of Commerce claimed that 50 migrants sent by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis had caused a “humanitarian crisis” — despite the number being dwarfed by the flood of illegal migrants seen in border towns and cities daily, which only comprised a minuscule 0.000025% of migrant encounters seen at the border thus far in the fiscal year.
“To our Island community, here is an update on [the] current humanitarian crisis on Martha’s Vineyard…we thank people for their continued help,” tweeted the Martha’s Vineyard Chamber of Commerce.
DeSantis sent two planeloads of migrants to the Martha’s Vineyard Airport in Massachusetts, similar to border states like Arizona and Texas, which have been busing migrants to New York City, Chicago, and Washington, D.C.
“We take what’s happening at the southern border very seriously, unlike some,” said DeSantis in a speech. “And unlike the president of the United States, who has refused to lift a finger to secure that border.”
The governor noted that the migrants sent to sanctuary jurisdictions are just a small fraction of the numbers being encountered on the border. “The minute even a small fraction of what those border towns deal with every day is brought to their front door, they go berserk, and they’re so upset that this is happening. And it just shows you that their virtue-signaling is a fraud.”
Although approximately 50 migrants were sent to the elite summer destination, the number is a fraction of the soaring migrant numbers encountered by cities, towns, and Border Patrol agents spread along the southern border.
So far, in the fiscal year 2021, more than two million migrants have been encountered. While some migrants are returned either by the Title 42 public health order or other methods, an overwhelming number are released into the United States to wait for their asylum hearings — which can take up to eight years. The two million migrant encounters do not include the hundreds to thousands of “getaways” who evaded agents.
According to Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) statistics, more than 500,000 migrants have been released into the United States on parole and enrolled into Alternatives to Detention (ATD) or their recognizance and given a court date (also known as Notice to Appear). The CBP’s statistic does not include the last two months of Fiscal Year 2022.
A New York Times report recently cited court filings. It cited internal DHS documents demonstrating that more than one million migrants have been released so far into the U.S. to await asylum hearings since President Joe Biden took office. The number is expected to rise in the coming weeks, months, and years.
“Gotaways” continue to mount
Sources have put the number of “getaways” at more than 500,000 during this fiscal year — a number on top of the almost 400,000 known “gotaways” that Alejandro Mayorkas, DHS Secretary, testified was in all of Fiscal Year 2021.
McAllen, Texas Mayor Javier Villalobos told a news agency, “The city of McAllen was able to deal with thousands of immigrants a day…I think they can handle a few hundred,” while emphasizing that McAllen sees about 100 migrant crossings per day.
“They have seen nothing,” said Sheriff Roy Boyd of Goliad County, Texas.
Meanwhile, sheriffs groups have emphasized that sheriffs have been dealing with massive surges for months, drastically eclipsing those sent to more affluent liberal areas.
“They’re overwhelmed,” said Jonathan Thompson, CEO and executive director of the National Sheriffs’ Association. “They’re overwhelmed trying to bring dead bodies and the remains of illegal aliens that are found in the desert. They’re overwhelmed in their communities with human services shortfalls. They’re overwhelmed with crime response. And they’re overwhelmed with just the sheer magnitude of things that need to happen to help care for people.”
