Border crossings are down from earlier in the week, Mayorkas says

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Sunday crossings at the southern border have decreased since the beginning of last week despite the end of Title 42, the pandemic-era policy used to block migrants from remaining in the U.S.

U.S. Border patrol has experienced “a 50 percent drop in the number of encounters versus what we were experiencing earlier in the week, before Title 42 ended at midnight on Thursday,” Mayorkas said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

The Trump-era policy, which was used to turn away asylum seekers more than 2 million times over more than three years, expired Thursday with the end of the Covid-19 public health emergency. Its termination led to some predictions of chaos at the border, as well as barbed rhetoric on both sides of the aisle about immigration policy and political grandstanding.

Border officials braced for an influx of asylum seekers in the days following the policy’s termination, and President Joe Biden sent 1,500 National Guard troops to the Southern border to assist with the transition. But as of Sunday, the overwhelming flood of migrants had not arrived.

“It is still early,” Mayorkas acknowledged. “But you know, we've been planning for this transition for months and months. And we've been executing on our plan.”

Mayoraks attributed the unexpected numbers to the Biden administration’s messaging to asylum seekers.

“There is a lawful, safe, and orderly way to arrive in the United States that is through the pathways that President Biden has expanded in an unprecedented way,” Mayorkas said. “And then there's a consequence if one does not use those lawful pathways.”

But some lawmakers, like Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), believe it's only a matter of time before the United States sees a surge.

"Has the message gotten though that the border is not open?" Jonathan Karl asked on ABC's "This Week."

"I don’t think so," McCaul replied. "I do think there are caravans going up. I think they still want to get in."

Title 42, a public health policy that dated to 1944 and was imposed during Covid by the Trump administration, was unpopular among immigration activists and progressive Democrats. But its expiration sparked concern from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle over whether the Biden administration was prepared to deal with the expected increase in migration.

Now that Title 42 has expired, the White House is relying on a new rule that bars people from applying for asylum if they first cross the border illegally, or if they do not first apply in another country. Those who do cross illegally could face a five-year ban from the country. U.S. officials have already removed thousands of people who have arrived at the border, Mayorkas said on ABC's "This Week," though they have not yet started to criminally prosecute those who have attempted to cross without first gaining legal admission.

Regardless, Republicans continued to criticize the White House’s border policies.

“What the secretary failed to say is that this week has seen more crossings than any week in our history,” Rep. Mark Green (R-Tenn.), the House Homeland Security chair, said on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

“Yes, there was some anticipation, and so people started coming across at higher numbers — in fact, record-breaking numbers at the first part of the week, but in the latter part of the week, a judge ruled that they can't do their plan of just releasing without a court date,” Green said, in reference to a Florida judge's ruling late Thursday blocking the administration from carrying out its proposed move to “parole” migrants crossing the border.

The White House has decried that ruling, calling it “sabotage” and saying that the Justice Department will fight it.

Though the administration is complying with that decision, it is "harmful" to both migrants and border security personnel, Mayorkas said Sunday on ABC's "This Week."

"We respectfully disagree with the judge’s interpretation of the law, his characterization of our actions. And we intend to litigate the matter," he told Karl.

Accusing Democrats of acting in bad faith, Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) also repeatedly blasted Biden and the Biden administration for a lack of leadership on the border situation.

“What Republicans want to see is a secure and orderly process at our Southern border,” he said on “Fox News Sunday.”

But Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) rejected Donalds’ assertion that Democrats are solely to blame. He said that a bipartisan solution is needed, and that increased funding for border patrols and immigration judges is essential.

“It’s a both-party issue,” Khanna said, citing an example of bipartisan reform: “Nothing has gotten done since President Reagan signed bipartisan immigration reform in 1986.”

Immigration has divided Congress along partisan lines, with Democrats calling on Republicans to pass comprehensive legislation to reform the immigration system and Republicans accusing the White House of being too lax in preventing illegal migration.

Donalds told "Fox News Sunday" host Shannon Bream: "When it comes to negotiations with the Democrats on this policy, I say to them very clearly, let's secure the border first. Let's get it done. Let's finish building the wall and doing all the other mechanisms that are crucial for our country's security, and when we have that done, then we can talk about all the immigration policies."

Despite the apparent deadlock over border policies, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) said he sees a path for immigration legislation in the Senate.

"I think there is still an opportunity, at least in the Senate, for bipartisan immigration reform," Murphy said on NBC's "Meet the Press."

"I do think there are a group of Republicans in the Senate who recognize that we have this massive labor shortage everywhere in the country ... and that there is an ability to help the American economy by letting more people into the country legally," he said.