Fox & Friends Saturday
November 4, 2024
6:42 a.m. Eastern
PETE HEGSETH: A terror suspect is being held without bond after his arrest last month, but not before, you know, roaming freely throughout the United States for two weeks.
WILL CAIN: Authorities said the man entered the U.S. illegally on October 3rd, and, days after, he was released. Homeland Security revealed he was wanted in his home country for terrorist activities.
RACHEL CAMPOS-DUFFY: This as a caravan of 7,000 migrants that was headed for the southern border is now stopped in Mexico, according to sources. Many are just too tired to keep walking. Well, here to react is Fox News contributor and former acting ICE director Tom Homan. Tom, and it's so scary to think that this terrorist was, you know, who knows, coordinating with a terror cell for two weeks before we actually caught him. What is going on? How come with the terror alert so high, the fire alarms aren't going off in the Biden administration at this moment?
TOM HOMAN, FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Look, first of all, this isn't the first time this has happened. This has happened before. And the reason it's happening is because the Border Patrol is under such pressure to process as quick as possible and release as quick as possible. This administration only cares about the optics of this crisis. If there's no overcrowding, then nothing to see here. So they're under intense pressure. That's why they keep sending more resources to the border -- not to enforce the law, not to secure the border, but to process quicker and to release quicker. And mistakes are going to be made.
But what concerns me more are the 1.7 (million) known got-aways. That's what scares me more. Who are they? No one is going to tell me not a single one of them -- 1.7 million got-aways -- didn't come from a country that sponsors terror. We got to remember. Border Patrol has arrested people from 171 different countries. Many of these countries are sponsors of terror. They've arrest 569 known people off the terrorist watch list. So you've got to figure how many of the 1.7 million known got-aways came from a country that sponsors terror.
CAIN: You know, Tom, to your point, take a look at this. This is the terror watch list, arrests at the southern border -- 169 in fiscal year 2023; 98 in 2022; 15 in 2021. You go back to the Trump years -- three, zero, six -- that's -- you know, I've had somebody say to me before, Tom, "Come on, there was no -- zero in 2019?" people have said, "Is that real?" And now we're looking at, you know, what is it, 120?
HOMAN: Well, it's more than that. You know what no one is talking about? The northern border. FY 2023, they arrest 434 -- excuse me -- 432 people on the terrorist watch list were arrested on the northern border -- almost twice as many as the southern border. Nobody is talking about that. People need to understand that the northern border -- the crossing jumped over 800 percent. They got very few Border Patrol assets up there, and they took 50 percent of them and moved them to the southern border. So the northern border is a huge vulnerability. But, you know (inaudible) ... "How do you know? How do you know?" After 9/11, we created all these databases -- the TSA no-fly list, the FBI screening database, the visa security program -- we stopped thousands of people from coming and getting a visa to come to the United States because during the vetting process, we found derogatory information.
However, if you're a terrorist today and you want to come harm the United States, you're going to take the route of least resistance. Why would you put yourself in a position to be vetted through all these programs. You simply get to Mexico, pay the cartels a little extra money, and be a got-away. That is what the scary thing is. This is the biggest -- I've said it a thousand times -- this is the biggest national security failure that I've seen in this country since 9/11, and it's self-inflicted.
HEGPETH: No doubt. Well, the Biden administration now says it's going to spend a million dollars on some border wall repairs. So you got to be feeling good about that?
HOMAN: This isn't -- I feel good about that, but people need to remember they might keep throwing money at this problem and pay countries more money to create opportunity zones in the country. Money doesn't fix this problem. It is a policy issue. All they got to do is brush off the Trump plans, reinstate "remain in Mexico" (policy). The Supreme Court already says it's legal. If they would reinstate the "remain in Mexico" program, they'd fix 80 percent of the problem. If they start up the third safe country agreements, they could solve this problem. There is a plan in place -- the Trump administration proved it -- illegal immigration at a 45-year low -- illegal immigration down 80 to 90 percent depending on what month you look at. There is a plan to fix it. We proved it. All they got to do is reinstate these plans and secure that border. But they don't -- they don't want to do it because this is by design.
CAMPOS-DUFFY: By design. Thank you for pointing out that this is not a money problem. The Republicans right now are still trying to attach border money to Ukraine money and pretending like -- and all it's going to do is you said, is just give more money for the Biden administration to process more illegals in our country. Tom, you've always been such a straight shooter on this issue. We really appreciate you joining us today.
pg 62 funding for increased immigration judge teams but not permanent hires, also more detention
pg 90 is division c border act
pg 115 processing at the border -- noncustodial removal
pg127 asylum officer can decide to send to removal proceeding for alien to seek immigration benefit
pg 128 positive v negative result
pg 135 negative determination -- if rejected only has 5 days to appeal
pg142 if fail to complete within 90 days shall be sent to proceedings that assume eligible for protection
pg187 contingent continental land border
efforts