Biden budget punts on opportunity to secure the border

It’s been said you can learn much about a man from his budget; how he spends his money reveals his priorities and true character. This maxim holds true even for the president’s budget. 

Unsurprisingly, the “Biden Budget” is a master class in missing the mark. Even as families and businesses are reeling from the effects of inflation caused by unrestrained Democrat spending, the Biden Budget boasts of $5.5 trillion in new taxes. One might object that the new revenue generated is going to solve the real problems Americans face. Spoiler alert: it doesn’t.

Instead, President Biden expects Americans to foot the bill for an array of woke policies and radical Green New Deal spending. Families may be struggling to put food on the table, but President Biden wants to force Americans to spend $52.2 billion to tackle climate change and another $3 billion to advance “gender equity.” 

The list of ridiculous items in the proposed budget is far too long, but what is most revealing about President Biden from his budget is where he does not want to spend your hard-earned tax dollars. 

In comparison to the tens of billions on misspent priorities, proposed funding to secure our southern border is abysmal—and this is in the middle of a border crisis. While the President’s Budget provides an additional $800 million for Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), it is no where close to addressing the utter chaos at the border. Clearly, our homeland security is not a priority for this president. 

Even the asylum system receives more money than CBP’s increase under this budget—$65 million more. While an asylum system is an important feature of any country, the Biden administration has completely dismantled this already-broken process to allow for the unrestrained flow of any illegal immigrant claiming persecution, regardless of the merits of their case.

Think about it: Biden believes it is better to give more money to funneling illegal immigrants into our country—with no accountability or substantial review—rather than stopping the flow of illicit drugs into our country.

Or consider the Office of Refugee Resettlement. This office secretly flew illegal immigrants in the dark of night to my home state of Tennessee, and to other non-border states. To continue conducting such activities, Biden’s proposed budget awards them $7.3 billion.

Despite Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas’ lack of attention to the border, he has overseen what is perhaps the largest border crisis in American history. Since President Biden took office, CBP has dealt with 4.7 million encounters and seized nearly 30,000 pounds of fentanyl. Since October, 53 apprehended immigrants were on the FBI’s terror watchlist, and since January, 209 gang members—many of whom have ties to MS-13—have been apprehended. Those numbers are staggering, but now think about the 1.3 million known “gotaways” since President Biden’s inauguration: how many more violent criminals and terror suspects have we missed?

Just this month, four Americans were kidnapped by Mexican cartels and two were killed, shortly after they had crossed from Texas into Mexico. And let’s not forget— the fentanyl flowing across the border is now the leading cause of death among adults aged 18-45. Why isn’t this a priority for the Biden administration? Is it really more important to spend $1.6 billion for the international Green Climate Fund or $7 billion in USDA climate funding than making sure our sons and daughters are kept safe from illicit drugs and cartel activity?

With an estimated $5.5 trillion in new taxes, one would think that President Biden could spare some much-needed support for our brave Border Patrol Agents who are fighting to protect the homeland. Nope.

If there is one thing we can learn about President Biden from his budget, it is this: he either does not understand the real problems facing Americans, or he simply does not care.

Mark Green is a U.S. representative for Tennessee and a former physician, business owner, and combat veteran of Afghanistan and Iraq, where he served three tours of duty. He is chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee and serves on the House Foreign Affairs Committee.