RUTHFULLY YOURS

https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/272419/next-caravan-rising-matthew-vadum

Another large caravan of would-be illegal aliens is forming down in Central America with the intention of moving north to demand jobs and government benefits, according to media reports.

The formation of this new army of migrants drives home the point that a border wall at the lengthy, porous U.S.-Mexico boundary is urgently needed. The failure to move forward with wall construction sends a message to the world that America is a weak country that lacks the moral fiber and political will to defend its national sovereignty. Not building the wall also provides would-be border jumpers extra incentives to enter the United States unlawfully.

The new caravan is estimated at 15,000 people and is reportedly planning to leave Honduras on Jan. 15.

“They say they are even bigger and stronger than the last caravan,” Irma Garrido, a member of Reactiva Tijuana Foundation has been quoted saying.

Thousands of Central American migrants from previous caravans in the fall are still present in various cities along the border. Many are waiting for U.S. authorities to process their requests for asylum. The migrants have worn out their welcome in Tijuana, Mexico, where overcrowded shelters are taxing local resources.

According to the Los Angeles Times:

Coordinators who helped direct the migrants on the 2,000-mile trek with bullhorns, arranging for buses and giving advice along the way, have mostly vanished. Many of the migrants say they feel abandoned and unsure where to turn next. Some are ready to return home.

Garrido said this new, larger caravan will probably be joined by more people in El Salvador and in Guatemala, but she said they don’t plan on coming straight to the Tijuana-San Diego border, where resources are already stretched nearly to a breaking point.

Last week, the U.S. and Mexico agreed to formulate a strategy to reduce Central American migration. It includes a $25-billion expenditure by Mexico in its southern states over the coming five years. The U.S. has vowed to ante up $4.8 billion for aid programs in Mexico and $5.8 billion for programs benefiting the Northern Triangle of Central America, consisting of Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala.

And yet American lawmakers have still not approved the $5 billion needed to begin construction of a wall on the international border with Mexico. President Trump has said he is considering shutting down the nation’s southern border if wall funding is not approved.

https://www.city-journal.org/mexican-border-christmas

At the southwest edge of the Lower 48, on a sunny, breezy beach where America meets the sea, a green and white van sits on a sandy road, facing south. Behind the wheel is a Border Patrol agent with his eyes on Mexico. The frontier fence stands 100 feet away. On the Mexican side, dozens of people are quietly taking selfies or peeking between the steel ribs of the 20-foot tall barrier. On the American side, three people from New York City look back. Two are visitors from Manhattan. The third is the agent himself—he hails from Brooklyn.

“I thought there would be more people on this side of the fence,” I said, noting that the nearby International Friendship Park was empty.

“More are coming,” the agent replied. “They’re on the way now.” I wanted to ask how he knew, but instead I squinted north, following the wide beach as it curved westward toward Coronado Island and San Diego Bay, clearly visible in the distance. There was no one in sight, and no border security, either—at least, none that I could see. It was three days before Christmas and on both sides of the border all was calm, all was California bright. “Just the way we like it,” the agent said.

At the southwestern edge of America, the border fence continues into the Pacific for 100 yards or so. Next stop, Shanghai. My cell phone flashed “Welcome to Mexico!” I glanced up at the huge Plaza de Toros bullring that towers above the border. Tijuana has worked hard to overcome its seedy reputation as a tourist trap selling souvenirs to norteamericanos. The city is now a thriving metropolitan area, with its own international airport, industrial parks, and condo developments. Tijuanistas are not happy about a politicized migrant march using their home town as a staging area.

But the march got lots of attention in the media, which is why my wife and I are here. After all that coverage of the troubles in Tijuana, we wanted to see what’s happening on the American side. That’s why others are coming, too, even though the automobile road to this part of the border is closed. Reaching the steel fence requires GPS assistance and a strenuous slog southward.

From Border Field State Park, it’s a three-mile round trip on foot, but a steady stream of visitors seemed willing to try. In the parking lot I met a man from Warsaw. “Poland has its own border problems,” he said. “I wish to see how America handles things.”

Parked beside him was a family of five from Australia. Mr. Aussie was also curious about the American side, though he confessed to feeling guilty about Australia keeping out Asian immigrants who arrive there uninvited, “in rickety boats.” Even using the word “rickety” unsettled him. “It’s probably the best they could do,” he said.

A van arrived with seven young people from India, who debated about making the walk to the border. “We want to see what’s happening,” said a man who had come to the U.S. to study at the University of Virginia. Now he worked for Amazon. “In India we are careful about borders,” another man said.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/white-house-invites-congressional-leaders-to-meet-with-trump-wednesday-11546374858?cx_testId=16&cx_testVariant=cx&cx_artPos=0&cx_tag=collabctx&cx_navSource=newsReel#cxrecs_s

President Trump has invited a bipartisan group of congressional leaders to the White House on Wednesday in a bid to negotiate an end to a partial government shutdown that is now in its second week, a White House official said Tuesday.

The invitation went to the top eight Republican and Democratic leaders in both the House and Senate, and the meeting is expected to include a briefing on border security from the Department of Homeland Security, a congressional aide said.

It was unclear if Democrats planned to attend the meeting. Since the shutdown began in late December, Mr. Trump and congressional Democrats have largely avoided direct negotiations.

The two sides are at odds over spending for a Southern border wall, with Mr. Trump insisting on funding for the wall and Democrats staunchly opposed.

In recent tweets, Mr. Trump has sought to coax Democrats to the negotiating table while also portraying their opposition to wall funding as an irresponsible acceptance of what he called “open borders.”

“Border Security and the Wall ‘thing’ and Shutdown is not where Nancy Pelosi wanted to start her tenure as Speaker!” Mr. Trump tweeted on Tuesday. “Let’s make a deal?”

Congress is scheduled to open a new session Thursday, with Mrs. Pelosi taking over the speakership after Democrats won control of the House in November elections.

As of Tuesday afternoon, it was uncertain who would attend Mr. Trump’s meeting. Some congressional Democratic leadership aides said the meeting might not happen, or would need to be postponed, because all of the lawmakers invited might not return from their New Year’s break to Washington, D.C., in time.

Aides to Mrs. Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.), as well as their two deputies, all confirmed Tuesday afternoon that they had received the invitation, but declined to say whether they would attend.

CONTINUE AT SITE