Exclusives

EXCLUSIVE: Northern Border Will Also Face Crisis After Trump Policy Ends, Border Patrol Union Warns

The end of Title 42, the Trump-era migrant expulsion policy, will bring overwhelming conditions for Border Patrol agents trying to secure the U.S. border with Canada, National Border Patrol Council President for the Swanton sector Sean Walsh exclusively told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

The end of Title 42 on May 11 will drain the resources of Border Patrol up north as agents will be tasked with helping their colleagues handle an expected influx down at the southern border by helping process migrants either virtually or in person on deployments, Walsh told the DCNF. Title 42, which has been largely used on the southern border with Mexico to make more than 2.7 million expulsions, has also been used along the northern border with a handful of flights from Plattsburgh, New York, to Texas, the DCNF previously exclusively reported.

“We will be processing either remotely or sent down south on detail or even worse both. In addition, the majority of resources and funds will be focused toward the southern border and largely ignoring the northern border and coastal response,” Walsh, whose sector saw an 846% increase in apprehensions of illegal migrants between October 2022 and January 2023, said of how things will change after Title 42.

The Border agents patrolling the northern border have seen large numbers of migrants coming from places like Mexico. Travelers from Mexico are not required to possess a visa to travel to Canada, all they need is an electronic travel authorization for the cost of seven Canadian dollars.

With roughly 2,200 Border Patrol agents stationed along the entire northern border compared to the nearly 20,000 total agents patrolling all U.S. borders, personnel morale has been tanking, according to Walsh.

“There’s a huge morale problem here because for two years they’re sent away for a month at a time. Agents are missing birthdays, anniversaries, all kinds of things, and it’s hard on marriages,” on norther border agent’s wife previously told the DCNF.

Haitian migrants who crossed the border illegally from Canada into the U.S. Jennie Taer//Daily Caller News Foundation

The Biden administration announced a new plan Thursday to handle the expected surge in migrants crossing the southern border by creating processing centers in Latin America, increasing penalties for illegal entry and providing some new legal pathways. Walsh, however, believes that the new programs won’t alleviate the situation or the stress on the agents.

“Once again this administration is playing games with our borders while blatantly ignoring the dangers of their ‘open’ border policies. The ending of Title 42 is not coming out of left field, they had months and years to plan and this administration failed to allow the security of the United States to be part of any of their plans,” Walsh said.

“At this point I could only assume their lack of concern is actually their answer. The northern border increases over the last two years is only going to grow even more when this administration leaves the northern border wide open again,” Walsh said.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.