DeLauro Statement on Congressional Delegation Visit to Texas-Mexico Border

WASHINGTON, DC – (January 20, 2020) On Friday, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-03) concluded a Congressional Delegation visit to the Texas-Mexico border to conduct oversight regarding the Trump administration's Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), better known as the "Remain in Mexico" policy. This policy directs the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to return asylum seekers to Mexico while their claims are being processed. Photos of DeLauro's visit to the Matamoros Refugee Camp where asylum seekers are living can be found here.

"The conditions our federal government has forced asylum seekers to live in are unconscionable. Kids and their families are on their own because our government is turning asylum seekers away as they await their court dates—usually six to eight months away. Many families live in tents if they are lucky enough to have one. They have limited access to basics like water and food, and there is no proper sanitation. As a result, people are becoming malnourished and are at high risk of contracting an infectious disease. To compound these problems, there are very few doctors on-site able to provide medical care. The Trump administration's policy for these asylum seekers is ‘out of sight, out of mind,' as we are not providing any services, and Mexico is providing limited help. The non-governmental organizations involved are doing their best to help, but they simply do not have the resources to take care of thousands of people."

"It could not be clearer that the Trump administration's Remain in Mexico policy is designed to inflict pain and suffering on those who are seeking to enter our country lawfully. This is a deterrence strategy, and it is cruel. Seeking asylum is not illegal, but it is being criminalized through this policy. Families are stuck in a camp that is not safe. Kids are being recruited by Mexican cartels. Violence and sexual assault are rampant. The trauma being inflicted on families is immoral, especially when we know that it is entirely avoidable. Everyone in this camp has sponsors in the United States who are willing to take them in. Family case management is a legitimate, cost-effective, and successful alternative, and it worked before the Trump administration killed the program."

"These issues also negatively affect our entire immigration process. For those asylum seekers lucky enough to get court date, only about one percent have legal representation. When facing an executive branch judge rather than an independent judge governed under our judicial system, families are dealing with a rigged game. The United States needs a fair process where independent judges can weigh the merits of each case with full legal representation for asylum seekers. CBP should also make exemptions for those with serious medical conditions standard across the board. We were able to get parole for a little six-year old girl with down syndrome and a heart condition seeking asylum, which will allow her to get the medical treatment she needs to survive. But right now, it is up to the whim of the CBP officers as to who can enter the United States and who cannot. This girl and her family may have been paroled on the day they arrived at the border in El Paso, but the officers in Brownsville refused for weeks. That is unacceptable."

"In the absence of a fair and humane process, parents are being forced into the unimaginable decision of sending their kids to cross into the United States alone so they will enter HHS's Unaccompanied Children program or watching them suffer in the Matamoros tent city. Family separation should never be a viable option. I am committed to working to reverse this cruel policy and implementing a fair system to expeditiously process asylum claims."

DeLauro serves as Chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education.