Our nation’s immigration laws were enacted to protect national security, public safety, public health and the jobs and wages of Americans.  Those laws are utterly and completely blind about race, religion and/or ethnicity.

The 9/11 Commission was crystal clear in its findings that first and foremost, the terror attacks of September 11, 2001 and other attacks perpetrated by foreign nationals were only possible because of multiple failures of the immigration system.

Failures of border security and a lack of interior enforcement have enabled criminal aliens, members of transnational gangs and terrorists to flow easily into the United States and, once in the United States, into towns and cities across America.

Failures of border security have also enabled aliens with dangerous communicable diseases to enter the United States and have permitted foreign workers to enter the U.S. to displace American workers.

Because of the extreme politicization of immigration, the United States intentionally lacks an adequate number of ICE agents and other resources to enforce the immigration laws from within the interior of the United States. There are roughly 7,000 ICE agents and they are not only responsible for enforcing immigration laws but other laws that have nothing to do with immigration.  To put this in perspective, TSA has more than 45,000 employees and the NYPD has more than 38,000 police officers.  The entire United States of America functionally has about 3,000 agents dedicated to enforcing our immigration laws.

I addressed this unconscionable betrayal of America and Americans in my extensive article, Sanctuary Country – Immigration failures by design that I hope you will take the time to read.

But today we will zoom in on one particularly egregious case that illustrates just how depraved and delusional some political leaders and their subordinate employees have become in undermining the already hobbled efforts by ICE through the creation of “Sanctuary Cities.”

These jurisdictions shield illegal aliens from immigration law enforcement and often ignore detainers lodged by ICE agents.  This frequently results in criminal aliens being released from custody and onto the streets where they are free to ply their criminal trades, killing, raping and robbing.

The May 22, 2019 Washington Times report, PG County admits sanctuary policy freed illegal immigrant before murder, began with this infuriating excerpt:

Prince George’s County has admitted it did defy an ICE detainer and released an immigrant living in the U.S. illegally who had been accused of attempted murder, only to see the teen implicated in a horrific gang-related killing last month.

A spokesman for the county corrections department said Wednesday it released the alleged MS-13 gang member onto the streets. Andrew Cephas retracted his statement on Tuesday that the department transferred custody of the teen to the state.

Stop and let the enormity of this one sink in.  An illegal alien who had been arrested for attempted murder was intentionally shielded from ICE by supposed law enforcement officers who took an oath to enforce the law and defend the Constitution.

On May 21, 2019 ICE issued a press release about this sordid case that provides even more damning facts, ICE seeks custody of teen murder suspects for a second time– Local jurisdiction failed to honor previous detainers.

This is how this press release began:

BALTIMORE – Following the recent arrest of two unlawfully present teens suspected in the violent murder of a young girl in Maryland, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) officers in Baltimore are again seeking to take custody of the illegal aliens through the ICE detainer process following the Prince George’s County Detention Center’s (PGCDC) failure to cooperate.

Josue Rafael Fuentes-Ponce and Joel Ernesto Escobar, both Salvadoran nationals, were previously arrested on May 11, 2018 when they were arrested by Prince George’s County Police Department (PGCPD) for attempted first-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder, participation in gang activity, conspiracy to commit murder, attempted robbery, and other related charges. ICE officers lodged a detainer with PGCDC, however both were released on an unknown date and time without notification to ICE.

On May 16, 2019, PGCPD arrested the same individuals and charged them with first-degree murder.

The alleged victim of these thugs was a fourteen year old girl whose life would have been spared if only the law enforcement officers had not obstructed ICE from carrying out its duties.

Time and again violent sociopathic aliens have been released by local law enforcement agencies around the United States to ostensibly protect “immigrants” from ICE agents.

Lawful immigrants and nonimmigrant aliens who abide by their terms of temporary admission into the United States need no protection from ICE agents just as motorists who operate their vehicles in accordance with motor vehicle laws need no protection from police officers.

Illegal aliens, on the other hand, violate our laws and should not be shielded from ICE.

The bogus argument that local authorities will only cooperate with ICE when aliens engage in “serious criminal” activities must be seen for what it is, a lie to justify obstructing immigration law enforcement.

As an INS agent I arrested numerous fugitive aliens during supposedly “routine” field investigations.

In fact, I will never forget the illegal alien I arrested at a glass factory in Brooklyn.  He had claimed to be a naturalized citizen who had been born in Belize.  We could find no record for him and so I took him into custody to initiate an investigation.

The owner of the factory was adamant that his employee was a “good guy” who was honest and trust worthy.  Indeed, he told me that this employee had the keys to the factory and frequently opened the business and locked up at night.

It turned out that this “trustworthy and honest” employee was using an assumed identity.  He had done time for manslaughter and after serving his sentence was deported.  He returned illegally to the United States was arrested and  prosecuted for unlawful reentry after deportation, a felony, and escaped from a federal penitentiary where he was serving his prison sentence.

Our immigration laws do not allow for local authorities to take it upon themselves to decide whether or not to turn illegal aliens over to ICE.

In the case that serves as the predication for my commentary today, these two alleged members of MS-13 posed a serious threat to community safety, a threat that is well known throughout Maryland where that gang has established a large and notorious reputation for extreme violence.

On June 21, 2017 the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on The MS-13 Problem: Investigating Gang Membership, its Nexus to Illegal Immigration, and Federal Efforts to End the Threat.

Here is an excerpt from Chairman Grassley’s statement:

This organization has been dubbed the world’s “most dangerous gang,” and some say it could be a terrorist organization. But, you wouldn’t expect anything less from a group whose motto is “kill, rape, and control.”

Unfortunately, over the past two years, this terrifying motto has become a vicious reality for many communities across our nation. So far this year, the gang has been publicly linked to dozens of high-profile killings, rapes, and assaults across the country, from the Washington D.C. metro area to Houston, Texas.

Undoubtedly, there are many more that simply haven’t been reported.

Once again the architects and perpetrators of “Sanctuary” policies have blood on their hands.

EDITORS NOTE: This FrontPage Magazine column is republished with permission.

On May 16, 2019 ICE issued a press release with the extremely disturbing headline:

Fraudulent family case involving 6-month-old represents ‘new level of child endangerment’ according to ICE officials.

Here is an excerpt from the press release:

Security Investigations (HSI) special agents have described as an increasing trend of fraudulent families presenting at the border in order to take advantage of loopholes in immigration laws and avoid being detained by immigration authorities.

“Cases like this demonstrate the real danger that exists to children in this disturbing new trend,” said HSI Acting Executive Associate Director Alysa Erichs. “And while we have seen egregious cases of smugglers renting and recycling children, this case involving a six-month-old infant is a new low – and an unprecedented level of child endangerment.”

Amilcar Guiza-Reyes, a 51-year old citizen and national of Honduras, who was previously deported in 2013, made an initial appearance in federal court in the Southern District of Texas May 10, charged with 8 USC 1324 alien smuggling for allegedly smuggling a 6-month-old infant across the U.S.-Mexico border.

On May 7, Guiza-Reyes was observed by U.S. Border Patrol wading across the Rio Grande River from Mexico into the U.S. near Hidalgo, Texas, carrying an infant child.

He initially claimed to the U.S. Border Patrol agents that the infant was his son. However, after presenting a fraudulent Honduran birth certificate at the Central Processing Center in McAllen, Texas, he was referred to HSI special agents for interview and further investigation. He later admitted to the HSI special agents that he obtained the child’s fraudulent document to show him as the father and that he intended to use the child to further his unlawful entry in to the U.S.

The child in this case, whose name is being withheld for privacy reasons, was transferred to the custody of the Department of Health and Human Services for placement.

Cases like this one have led HSI to step up investigations into similar cases of fraud involving children. In recent months, HSI has deployed 130 personnel to the border, including special agents, forensic interview specialists, document examiners and victim assistance specialists, in an effort to combat this phenomenon.

The radical left blames Trump’s immigration policies for separating “immigrant” families, the reality is that all too often, alien families are separated long before the aliens come to the United States.

The Flores Decision mandates that illegal alien families with minor children cannot be kept in custody for more than 20 days.

This has led to a huge increase in two types of fraud, adult illegal aliens falsely claiming to be minors and as we see in this case, adult aliens entering the United States illegally with children to whom they are not related but falsely claim to be those minor children’s parents.

In this case an infant was separated from its family either with the consent of the parents who may have been paid to “rent” the baby or by kidnappers who simply took the child from its family.

Of course now the challenge will be to find the actual parents of the six month old infant child.

That process may take a very long time and undoubtedly the media will complain bitterly about how long the child is separated from his/her parents.  They will likely blame DHS and the Trump administration for the crimes committed by alien smugglers who have been emboldened by failures of the leadership of both parties to provide essential resources to secure our borders

Today the U.S. southern border is under siege with tens of thousands of illegal aliens being apprehended each month, overwhelming the already limited resources of CBP (Customs and Border Protection) while members of the lunatic left claim that there is no crisis on the border but a fantasy created by the Trump administration.

Furthermore, historically, for decades, families from foreign countries have been separated when a family member enters the U.S. without inspection or violates the terms of his/her lawful admission to work illegally in the United States and/or commit other violations of our laws so that they can send money back to their families in their home countries.

Incredibly politicians who favor massive amnesty programs to legalize unknown millions of illegal aliens claim that the best way to reunite these families is to provide these illegal aliens with lawful status and then empower them to permit their families to legally join them in the United States.

As I noted back in 2013 when I testified before a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the topic, Building An Immigration System Worthy Of American Values the immigration policies of the Obama administration and statements made by politicians who promised to provide lawful status to massive numbers of illegal aliens served to fire the “starter’s pistol” for aspiring illegal aliens from around the world, turning our borders into the finish line.

Of course the most sensible solution to “reuniting” these families is to send the illegal alien back to his/her home country where they are then reunited with their families.

There are numerous accounts of children being “rented” out by their own parents to smugglers and to aliens who seek to use that child to expedite their release from ICE custody when they make bogus claims to political asylum.

Another possibility also exists, very young children may be kidnapped by smugglers to be used to further their alien smuggling operations.  Infants obviously cannot be interviewed and make the ideal “child” to exploit in such situations.

Immigration fraud has always been a major issue for immigration law enforcement but one which receives little if any attention in the mainstream media or even by politicians who propose immigration legislation that ignores how fraud may well render the laws that they enact moot and meaningless.

On May 18, 2004 I testified before the House Subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security and Claims at a hearing on the topic: Pushing The Border Out On Alien Smuggling: New Tools And Intelligence Initiatives.

That hearing was initially to be held to explore the issue of alien smuggling.  I convinced Representative Jackson Lee to look beyond the U.S./Mexican border and consider the role of visa fraud, immigration fraud and document fraud to facilitate alien smuggling.  The terminology of “pushing the border out” referred to my argument that requiring aliens to present visas when they seek admission into the United States would move America’s borders out to the U.S. consulates and embassies where the visas are issued.

Immigration fraud was, in fact, determined to be the prime method and entry for international terrorists and was an issue covered at length by the 9/11 Commission and documented in the official report prepared by the 9/11 Commission staff, 9/11 and  Terrorist Travel.  This report focused specifically on the ability of the terrorists to enter the United States and ultimately embed themselves in the United States as they went about their deadly preparations to carry out a deadly attack.

Awhile back I wrote Immigration Fraud, Lies That Kill.

With so much “on the line” our political leaders irrespective of party affiliation must finally make border security and related areas of immigration law enforcement the priority it should have been for all too many years.

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EDITORS NOTE: This FrontPage Magazine column is republished with permission.