In the wake of President Trump’s pardons of Jan. 6 rioters, Democrats joined with two men who were assaulted by the mob — retired U.S. Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn and Washington Metro Police Department officer Daniel Hodges — to denounce the president’s actions.
“On Monday, Donald Trump decided that he wants to whitewash history, pretend that the riot of January 6 never happened, and that it was simply a peaceful walk through the Capitol. Unfortunately for him, video and photographs don’t lie,” Rep. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., said. “You cannot say you back the blue if you are going to let out of jail violent criminals who assaulted the blue.”
California Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell added, “Nothing erases what they did, but we should erase this concept that Donald Trump and the Republican Party have the backs of law enforcement officers. “Donald Trump does not back the blue. He backs the coup, and this action makes that absolutely clear.”
Dunn, who retired from the USCP and ran an unsuccessful bid for Congress, denounced Trump’s actions.
“The Republican Party has long claimed to be the party of law and order, back the blue, however many lawmakers’ silence and refusal to push back against Donald Trump’s actions make it incredibly hard to take that claim serious,” he said. “The winner writes history. He didn’t win. He’s not going to. I’m not going away. That’s it.”
After Republicans launched their own select subcommittee to investigate the events surrounding Jan. 6, Rep. Jason Crow, a member of the January 6 select committee who received a preemptive pardon from former President Joe Biden in the final moments of his presidency, called the newly minted panel “a farce that is intended to try to cover up their abuse of process.”
“It’s another diversion. It’s another distraction in an attempt to rewrite history, but also to confuse folks,” Crow, D-Colorado, said. “But you heard pretty clearly today that we’re not confused and we’re not distracted, nor will we be. We’re going to continue to tell the story loudly, clearly, repeatedly, about the criminality, about the abuse, not just of power, but of our law enforcement of the blue and we’re not going to stop.”
-ABC News’ John Parkinson
President Trump has announced that he will be sending 1,500 troops to the southern border in an effort to curb illegal immigration. This move comes as part of his administration’s continued efforts to secure the border and crack down on illegal crossings.
The decision to send additional troops to the border has sparked controversy, with critics arguing that it is an unnecessary and costly measure. However, the Trump administration maintains that it is essential to protect national security and uphold immigration laws.
Stay tuned for live updates on Trump’s second term as he continues to address immigration and border security issues. Follow along as we bring you the latest developments on this important issue. #Trump2ndTerm #BorderSecurity #ImmigrationUpdate
The commandant of the US Coast Guard has been removed from her position over “leadership deficiencies” and “operational failures,” a Department of Homeland Security official confirmed to CNN on Tuesday.
In a list of reasons “supporting her immediate removal,” the official cited Adm. Linda Fagan’s “failure to address border security threats” and “excessive focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion policies.” Additionally, the official said the Coast Guard suffered “significant shortfalls in recruiting personnel” under Fagan’s leadership. But the Coast Guard actually met — and in certain areas exceeded — its recruiting goals for the first time in 6 years in October.
The list also cites the “mishandling” and “coverup” of Operation Fouled Anchor, a secret internal Coast Guard investigation that substantiated dozens of rapes and assault allegations at the agency from the late 1980s to 2006, CNN has reported.
Fagan has said she only learned of the “totality” of the so-called Fouled Anchor probe when CNN inquired about the issue last year, though she had heard of it because she had previously taken steps to remove a commanding officer caught up in the investigation.
Fagan’s firing came just hours after President Donald Trump was inaugurated. Trump signed executive orders on Monday aimed at increasing the US military’s presence at the southern border, and he has repeatedly criticized the US military for being too “woke” and focused on DEI initiatives.
The Coast Guard under Fagan has been targeted by Trump’s allies before. Then-GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz and GOP Rep. Eli Crane sent a letter to DHS in August “demanding answers” over the Coast Guard’s “prioritization of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)” initiatives, pointing to the agency’s Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity inclusivity training and calling it “indoctrination.”
Trump’s pick for secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, has said publicly that “any General, Admiral, whatever that was involved in any of the DEI woke sh*t has got to go.”
Fagan was the first female uniformed leader of a US armed forces branch. CNN has reached out to the US Coast Guard for comment from Fagan.
Fox News first reported Fagan was removed from her position.
The Trump administration has removed the commandant of the Coast Guard, Admiral Karl Schultz, citing his failure to address border security issues and his focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives within the organization.
This decision has sparked controversy and raised concerns about the politicization of the military, as Admiral Schultz was widely respected for his leadership and dedication to the Coast Guard’s mission of protecting our nation’s maritime interests.
Critics argue that removing Admiral Schultz sends a troubling message about the priorities of the Trump administration, which has been criticized for its hardline stance on immigration and its lack of emphasis on diversity and inclusion in the military.
It remains to be seen who will replace Admiral Schultz as the commandant of the Coast Guard and what impact this decision will have on the organization’s ability to effectively carry out its duties. Stay tuned for updates on this developing story.
EXCLUSIVE: The Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard has been terminated over concerns about the border, recruitment concerns and an “erosion of trust,” a senior DHS official confirmed to Fox News.
Adm. Linda Lee Fagan has been terminated by the Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Benjamine Huffman, the official said.
Fagan has demonstrated leadership deficiencies, operational failures and an inability to advance the strategic objectives of the Coast Guard.
Admiral Linda Fagan.(U.S. Coast Guard)
These include the failure to address border security threats, insufficient leadership in recruitment and retention, mismanagement in acquiring key acquisitions such as icebreakers and helicopters, excessive focus on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and an “erosion of trust” over the mishandling and cover-up of Operation Fouled Anchor.
Fagan served as the 27th Commandant of the Coast Guard starting on June 1st, 2022. She was tasked with overseeing all global Coast Guard operations and 42,000 active-duty, 7,000 reserve and 8,700 civilian personnel, as well as the support of 21,000 Coast Guard Auxiliary volunteers.
Coast Guard commandant ousted over border security failures and diversity, equity, and inclusion focus: insider sources
Tags:
Coast Guard commandant termination
Border lapses Coast Guard
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion focus Coast Guard
Interstate 91 between exits 27 (Newport) and 26 (Orleans) is partially closed after Vermont State Police said a U.S. border patrol agent was shot.VSP said the shooting, which involved a U.S. Border Patrol agent, happened on Monday afternoon at 3:15 p.m. The roadway was closed at 3:30 p.m. following what Vermont State Police called an “evolving police incident.”The northbound lane of I-91 reopened near mile marker 168 just after 5 p.m. The southbound lane remains closed and is expected to be part of a long-duration closure, according to VSP.Few details were initially available regarding the incident.The Federal Bureau of Investigation is leading the investigation. Vermont State Police is assisting the FBI at the scene. Motorists are being told to seek an alternate route until the roadway reopens.NBC5 has a crew en route to Derby to get the latest information.This is a breaking news story. It will be updated when more information is available.
DERBY, Vt. —
Interstate 91 between exits 27 (Newport) and 26 (Orleans) is partially closed after Vermont State Police said a U.S. border patrol agent was shot.
VSP said the shooting, which involved a U.S. Border Patrol agent, happened on Monday afternoon at 3:15 p.m.
The roadway was closed at 3:30 p.m. following what Vermont State Police called an “evolving police incident.”
The northbound lane of I-91 reopened near mile marker 168 just after 5 p.m. The southbound lane remains closed and is expected to be part of a long-duration closure, according to VSP.
Few details were initially available regarding the incident.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is leading the investigation. Vermont State Police is assisting the FBI at the scene.
Motorists are being told to seek an alternate route until the roadway reopens.
NBC5 has a crew en route to Derby to get the latest information.
This is a breaking news story. It will be updated when more information is available.
Interstate 91 partly closed in Newport after border patrol agent shot, police say
Authorities have closed part of Interstate 91 in Newport following a shooting incident involving a border patrol agent. According to police, the agent was shot while on duty and is currently being treated for their injuries.
The closure has caused significant traffic delays in the area, with drivers being urged to find alternate routes if possible.
The investigation into the shooting is ongoing, and police are asking anyone with information to come forward.
Please stay tuned for further updates on this developing story.
PHOENIX — A newly built segment of the southern Arizona border wall may bolster national security, but it will endanger one of the rarest desert fish in the U.S., according to the Center for Biological Diversity.
The Sonora chub in Arizona is one of only two populations of the species in the U.S. and is protected under the Endangered Species Act. The fish live in the California Gulch, a stream in the western portion of the Atascosa Highlands, a region consisting of three small mountain ranges along the international border just west of Nogales.
The newly built border wall and paved road have impeded the flow of the stream where the fish live, according to a report the center released Wednesday.
The desert fish, a minnow that grows up to 20 centimeters in length, also feeds off of many native food sources in the surrounding streams. Though its Arizona population has remained steady since its discovery in 1995, the Center for Biological Diversity is concerned new infrastructure will push the fish to the brink.
Krista Kemppinen, a senior scientist at the center, said new border infrastructure is cutting this population off from its lifeline in Sonora.
“Designating California Gulch as critical habitat is more urgent than ever to minimize other threats, such as by keeping cows out of the Sonora chub’s pools,” Kemppinen said in a press release.
She also shared ideas for steps federal authorities can take to balance border security with environmental preservation.
“It’s also imperative that carefully designed culverts be added to the new border infrastructure to allow at least some semblance of a natural streamflow and migration. If federal officials are serious about saving this fish, they need to act now,” Kemppinen said.
What progress is being made to protect the fish from the new Arizona border wall segment?
Time is of the essence because the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service previously stated it would not act on a request to help preserve the fish’s habitat until 2027 at the earliest.
This announcement followed a 36-page petition submitted by the Center for Biological Diversity in March 2023.
Kemppinen said authorities should designate four miles of the fish’s native area in Arizona as critical habitat.
“The Sonora chub’s survival depends on being able to access scarce desert water on both sides of the border, exchange genetic material with nearby populations in Mexico, and bolster its populations with upstream migrations of fish from Sonora after droughts,” Kemppinen said. “The new construction makes all that impossible.”
Besides access to water, other threats to the Sonora chub include uranium mining, nearby livestock grazing and recreational activity like the creation of hiking trails.
Have a story idea or tip? Pass it along to the KTAR News team here.
The recent construction of a new part of the border wall in Arizona is posing a significant threat to the habitat of a rare fish species. The endangered Gila topminnow, a small fish native to the region, is at risk of losing its home due to the wall’s construction.
Environmentalists and conservationists have expressed concern over the impact of the border wall on the fragile ecosystem of the area. The wall is disrupting the natural flow of water and fragmenting the habitat of the Gila topminnow, making it difficult for the fish to migrate and find suitable breeding grounds.
The Gila topminnow is already facing numerous threats, including habitat loss, pollution, and invasive species. The construction of the border wall is only exacerbating these problems and pushing the fish closer to extinction.
Efforts are being made to raise awareness about the plight of the Gila topminnow and push for alternative solutions to border security that do not harm the environment. It is crucial that we prioritize the protection of endangered species and their habitats, even in the face of political and security concerns. The future of the Gila topminnow and other rare species depends on our ability to coexist with nature and find sustainable solutions to our challenges.
During Donald Trump’s first presidential term, he began an ambitious and costly border militarization program, including the construction of over 450 miles of wall that severed wildlife corridors and fragmented ecosystems in some of the country’s most remote and biodiverse regions. With his second inauguration on Monday, environmentalists are bracing for any new phase of construction that could exacerbate the ecological toll of the border wall.
“It’s an absolute travesty and a disaster for border wildlife,” said Margaret Wilder, a human-environment geographer and political ecologist at the University of Arizona, regarding the environmental impact of the existing border wall and the prospect of renewed construction. She said the wall harmed efforts “after many decades of binational cooperation between the US and Mexico to protect this fragile and biodiverse region. I don’t think Americans realize what is at stake.”
What’s at stake is the historically unparalleled separation of wildlife populations along the more than 635 miles of pedestrian border wall – largely impassable to anything bigger than a jackrabbit – that has been built along the southern border. “This [the border wall] is a massive uncontrolled experiment in the evolutionary history of wildlife species in the borderlands,” said Laiken Jordahl, south-west conservation advocate for the Center for Biological Diversity. “The places that are still unwalled are some of the most remote, rugged, and important habitats for wildlife that we have left.”
New Mexico and Arizona have approximately 391 miles of the pedestrian border wall, 263 miles of which were constructed during the first Trump administration.
A recent Wildlands Network and Sky Islands Alliance study showed the impact of the pedestrian border wall (30ft-high steel pillars 4in apart) on wildlife movement and habitat connectivity in the exceptionally biodiverse Sky Island region of Sonora Mexico and the south-western US. Motion-activated cameras placed along 100 miles of Arizona border showed an 86% decrease in wildlife crossings and a 100% reduction in crossing for large animals such as bears, pronghorns and jaguars.
The border wall in 2022. Photograph: Guillermo Arias/AFP/Getty Images
“The sky islands are a continental crossroads where many different species, including humans, have been passing through for millennia,” said the Sky Island Alliance program director, Emily Burns. “Putting in a continuous wall across the border of Arizona is extremely bad for medium and large wildlife.”
All indications show a continuation of Trump’s hardline approach to immigration and the southern border. Trump has criticized the Biden administration’s auctioning off border wall materials, describing the sales as “almost a criminal act” that would cost taxpayers millions of dollars when Trump resumes border wall construction. “They know we’re going to use it, and if we don’t have it, we’re going to have to rebuild it, and it’ll cost double what it cost years ago,” said Trump.
However, precise plans for the border wall remain unclear.
“No one has any idea what the hell is about to happen,” said Jordahl. “We’re definitely bracing ourselves for the worst.”
The border wall was a signature priority of Trump’s first candidacy, made possible by the expansive powers given to the Department of Homeland Security by Congress. These powers allowed for the bypassing of federal laws to speed up construction and bolster border security through Customs and Border Protection, the nation’s largest law enforcement agency.
Ricky Garza, border policy counsel with the Southern Border Communities Coalition, has witnessed the steady creep of border militarization in the Rio Grande valley.
“That entire area is just being choked off by border patrol presence,” Garza said, referring to the growing number of green-and-white border patrol vehicles, immigration checkpoints, and border infrastructure. “There is this physical occupation structure that increases as you get closer to the border.”
Texas has the most border with Mexico, but the least wall mileage as the border is formed by the Rio Grande and land on the Texas side is mostly privately owned. Border wall construction has been more common on federally owned land not because these are busy migrant crossings but because building on private property is extremely difficult. During the Trump administration, 263 miles of pedestrian fencing and border wall were built in mostly rural New Mexico and Arizona. Today more than 60% of the Arizona border has been walled.
“In those really remote rugged areas, whether it was the mountains in Arizona, et cetera, there was no indication that people were attempting to cross the border, at least by any numbers,” said Gil Kerlikowske, a former commissioner of Customs and Border Protection. “So why try and put up any type of border wall in a place where you really do not need it?”
Birds flying over US-Mexico border. Photograph: Thalia Juarez/The Guardian
When I visited the Arizona border in the waning days of Trump’s first term, construction crews were busy dynamiting hilltops and grading up mountainsides to complete disconnected sections of border walls in some of the most remote and impassable parts of the border.
Burns, of Sky Island Alliance Program, fears construction in these areas could resume as the federal laws to construct the barrier remain waived. “There are construction plans for the places where the wall had been canceled,” said Burns. “It seems very possible that old projects will just be dusted off and reactivated.”
Kerlikowske is less sure. “Tom [Homan] made it clear that he wanted to focus on the border more or less as the borders are,” he said of Trump’s incoming “border czar”.
“What’s really troubling is that the sections of the border that they did not wall off in Arizona and New Mexico are some of the most sensitive places and important wildlife corridors for species like black bear, jaguar and other mammals,“ said Myles Traphagen, Borderlands Program Coordinator for the Wildlands Network.
That closure of unwalled sections would be a death knell for the elusive jaguar, which has reappeared in the US after being hunted to extinction in the 1960s.
“More [wall] would definitely cut off jaguars from crossing into the US in the last corridors it has from Sonora to Arizona,” said Burns. “When these animals move it is a lifeline for populations on the brink.”
Border construction is a bipartisan endeavor. The Obama administration built more than 100 miles of new border wall. Biden resumed construction in 2023 after attempts to redirect money appropriated for the wall in 2019 failed “The money was appropriated for the border wall,” Biden said. “I can’t stop that.”
According to a CBP spokesperson, since 2021, the agency has prioritized barrier funding to close gaps and complete gates along the southern border. Of the 163 gap closures and gate projects approved since 2021, 119 have been completed.
Approximately 57 miles of new border barrier gap closures are planned. These projects are still in the environmental planning process and are estimated to start in early 2025 according to CBP.
“The border wall is an engine of death,” said Garza, of the Southern Border Communities Coalition, as the southern border is now the deadliest land migration route in the world.
With Trump re-entering office he worries things will only get worse. “I don’t want my home to be turned into a sacrifice zone, but that’s what we’re moving toward.”
The US-Mexico border has long been a hotbed of controversy, with tensions running high over immigration, security, and trade. But now, there are growing concerns for the wildlife that call this region home as President Trump takes office.
“It’s an absolute travesty,” says environmental activist Maria Sanchez. “The border wall that Trump has proposed will not only disrupt the natural habitats of countless species, but it will also sever crucial migration routes and cut off access to vital resources.”
Already, the construction of border barriers and increased security measures have had a devastating impact on wildlife populations. Endangered species like the jaguar, ocelot, and black bear are at risk of being pushed to the brink of extinction, while countless other animals face displacement and fragmentation of their habitats.
Conservationists and scientists are sounding the alarm, warning that the Trump administration’s aggressive stance on border security could have dire consequences for the delicate ecosystems that exist along the border. Without proper safeguards in place, the rich biodiversity of this region could be irreparably damaged.
As the new administration moves forward with its plans for the border, it is crucial that the protection of wildlife and their habitats be taken into account. The future of these species, and the health of the ecosystems they rely on, hang in the balance. It’s time to act before it’s too late.
Tags:
Trump administration impact on border wildlife
US-Mexico border wildlife concerns
Trump policies and border wildlife
Environmental threats at US-Mexico border
Wildlife conservation in the face of Trump’s presidency
A newly built segment of border wall in southern Arizona will keep out more than just illegal immigrants, a nonprofit conservation organization says.
The border wall segment and a “paved road across Arizona’s California Gulch is blocking streamflow critical to the survival of one of only two U.S. populations of Sonora chub,” a press release from the Center for Biological Diversity reads.
The “rare desert fish” is a “small, moderately chubby fish that feasts on a variety of native food sources and has a unique and distinctly red coloration on the underside when in breeding condition,” the organization says.
“The new wall and road will push these imperiled fish to the brink of extinction,” Krista Kemppinen, Ph.D., a senior scientist at the Center for Biological Diversity, said in a statement.
A then and now look at the section of border wall in southern Arizona that impacts the endangered Sonora chub fish. (Russ McSpadden/Center for Biological Diversity)
“The Sonora chub’s survival depends on being able to access scarce desert water on both sides of the border, exchange genetic material with nearby populations in Mexico, and bolster its populations with upstream migrations of fish from Sonora after droughts. The new construction makes all that impossible,” she continued.
The organization drew attention to the matter just days before President-elect Donald Trump is set to retake office and ramp up his border security efforts.
A closeup look of the endangered Sonora chub, a “stream-dwelling minnow” that is usually five to seven inches long.(U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service)
“Designating California Gulch as critical habitat is more urgent than ever to minimize other threats, such as by keeping cows out of the Sonora chub’s pools,” Kemppinen said in the statement. “It’s also imperative that carefully designed culverts be added to the new border infrastructure to allow at least some semblance of a natural streamflow and migration. If federal officials are serious about saving this fish, they need to act now.”
Earlier this month, Trump set off a fiery debate over whether Democrats should be to blame for California’s wildfires after he accused Gov. Gavin Newsom of caring more about protecting endangered fish species known as smelt than protecting the state’s residents from wildfires.
President Donald Trump speaks with U.S. Border Patrol Chief Rodney Scott as they participates in a ceremony commemorating the 200th mile of border wall at the international border with Mexico in San Luis, Arizona, on June 23, 2020. (SAUL LOEB/AFP )
Trump set off a firestorm on Wednesday when he called out Newsom on his Truth Social platform for wanting “to protect an essentially worthless fish” over protecting the water needs of Californians. The comments are not new, however. In the run-up to the November election, Trump made the claim during an October interview with podcaster Joe Rogan.
Neither the Center for Biological Diversity nor the Trump transition team responded to a request for comment regarding this story.
Fox News’ Alec Schemmel contributed to this report.
The construction of a newly built border wall segment along the U.S.-Mexico border is causing concern for the endangered desert pupfish, a rare species of fish that inhabits the region. According to a conservation organization, the wall is further endangering the already declining population of these unique fish.
The desert pupfish, known for its ability to survive in extreme desert conditions, has already been facing threats from habitat destruction and water pollution. The construction of the border wall is now posing an additional threat to their survival, as it disrupts their natural habitat and blocks their migration patterns.
Conservationists are calling for action to protect the desert pupfish and other endangered species that are being affected by the border wall construction. They are urging policymakers to consider the environmental impacts of the wall and to find alternative solutions that will not harm these vulnerable species.
As the debate over border security continues, it is important to remember the important role that conservation plays in protecting our planet’s biodiversity. The desert pupfish is just one example of the many species that are at risk of extinction due to human activities, and it is crucial that we take action to preserve their habitats and ensure their survival for future generations.
Tags:
Border wall impact on rare desert fish
Conservation organization warns of border wall threat
Endangered desert fish at risk from new border wall segment
Protecting rare fish from border wall construction
Environmental concerns over new border wall segment
Rare desert fish endangered by border wall project
Conservation efforts threatened by border wall expansion
Border wall impact on desert fish habitat
Endangered species threatened by border wall construction
Conservation group raises alarm about border wall’s impact on rare fish
President-elect Donald Trump has promised to crackdown on illegal immigration starting as soon as the first day of his second term.
Meanwhile, a new bill recently filed in the Texas Senate would make it easier for new border wall segments to be built in the Lone Star State.
CBS News Texas politics reporter Jack Fink spoke with the bill’s author as part of Sunday’s Eye on Politics.
Also on the immigration topic, one of the first bills could reach Trump’s desk: The Laken Riley Act. Fink spoke with U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), who passed an amendment to the legislation.
And as part of a series that looks at how Trump immigration policies could impact the Texas border with Mexico, CBS News Texas anchor Ken Molestina returned to various Texas border communities to hear what residents are saying about the new administration.
Texas’ eminent domain authority to build border wall
State Sen. Brandon Creighton (R-Conroe) has filed a bill to allow Texas to use eminent domain authority to build a wall along the southern border. Creighton, the Senate President Pro Tempore, said his bill is the only legislation filed so far that would give the state the power.
In an interview with CBS News Texas, Creighton said the state must think beyond the Trump administration.
“In Texas, we have to continue working on our border enforcement plan because either way you look at it, this administration will be there for four years, but protecting Texas and all Texans at our southern border is not on a four year expiration. That’s permanent,” the state legislator said.
Creighton said eminent domain authority is already used by the state for other public projects.
“Just as we do for highways, roads, dams, and bridges. Keeping people safe, building necessary infrastructure to provide for the safety of all Texans,” he explained.
Watch Jack Fink’s full interview with State Sen. Brandon Creighton:
State Rep. Gene Wu (D-Houston) criticized the bill.
“The state already has eminent domain power, but the state has to prove that it actually needs it. In Texas, we’ve actually thrown in more than $10 billion into border security in our state and we have very little to show for it,” he argued.
Laken Riley Act
The U.S. Senate advanced what could become the first bill to crack down illegal immigration during incoming President Donald Trump’s second term.
The Laken Riley Act is named after Laken Riley, a nursing school student in Georgia who was murdered by a man who entered the country illegally. If passed, those in the country illegally who are accused of crimes such as burglary, theft, and shoplifting would be detained by federal authorities.
Sen. John Cornyn told CBS News Texas that an amendment to the bill that he passed last week requires any migrant who assaulted law enforcement officers to be held by the feds as well.
“I think it’s common sense. It’s shocking to me that 25 Democrats voted against that. But I guess those are the 25 who didn’t learn anything from the November 5th election, but I’m glad it passed. I expect we will send this to President Trump’s desk, and he will sign it into law shortly after he is sworn in,” Sen. Cornyn said.
There is bipartisan support for this bill in the Senate. The House previously approved the measure but will have to vote on it again because of Sen. Cornyn’s amendment. Opponents, including some Democrats, have criticized the measure saying it removes due process rights for migrants. The vote in the Senate will take place next week.
Cornyn also discussed how Republicans intend to pass Trump’s agenda and his decision to run for reelection next year.
Watch Jack Fink’s full interview with Sen. John Cornyn:
CBS News Texas anchor Ken Molestina returned to various communities along the Texas border to get a sense of how people are feeling as Trump takes office.
In November, Trump not only won in the state of Texas, but border counties turned red.
After a contentious battle that split Texas House Republicans, State Rep. Dustin Burrows of Lubbock was elected Speaker.
In the second round of voting, he defeated his fellow Republican David Cook of Mansfield, 85 to 55 votes.
Records show 49 Democratic representatives voted for Burrows, which is more than the 36 Republicans who backed him. Burrows struck a conciliatory tone after being sworn in: “I commit to you today every member, every member will have a voice. Every district, every district will have a seat at the table.”
House Democratic caucus chairman, Rep. Gene Wu of Houston, said most of the Democratic lawmakers backed Burrows because they’re tired of partisan bickering.
“What Democrats have done and what Republicans have done is the people who are reasonable in the middle and who actually want to fix things have gotten together and said forget all the partisanship, let’s work together,” Wu said.
Another Democratic state representative, Ramon Romero of Fort Worth, said Burrows’ victory was impressive: “Knowing that we have a strong leader I would say overwhelming 85 votes, I think it sends a good signal to the other branches that the House is independent.”
Burrows’ victory continues to divide Republicans. State Rep. Shelley Luther (R-Grayson County) agreed with the assessment by various grassroots conservatives who commented on social media.
“The Democrats just chose who they wanted for Speaker, that’s 100 percent true,” Luther said. She backed Rep. Cook over Burrows.
“I think we gave it a good try to get a reformer in the House. We tried to reform the Texas House like the grassroots wanted and we weren’t successful today. But that doesn’t mean we can’t be successful in the Texas House this session. The grassroots are going to be pretty upset with some of the people who voted for Burrows, so I am worried for them at this point,” Luther added.
Among the Republicans who backed Burrows over Cook, State Rep. Jared Patterson of Frisco. He criticized Cook for not dropping out of the race.
“Let’s be clear, David Cook’s vanity project in running for Speaker and when he knew he had no pathway to become Speaker, he knew that he couldn’t get within 20 votes winning the election. He empowered the Democrats to pick the Speaker because he’s the one that split the party,” Patterson said.
CBS News Texas asked Rep. Cook for a response, but didn’t hear back. In a statement released after the vote, Cook said, “We sparked an important and long-overdue conversation about the need for reform within this body, and for that I am truly appreciative.”
Jack Fink covers politics for KTVT-TV CBS 11 and has been with the station since September 2003.
As Trump takes office, a new Texas bill would make it easier to build the border wall
With the inauguration of President Trump, the issue of border security has once again taken center stage. In response to the President’s calls for a stronger border wall, Texas lawmakers have introduced a bill that would make it easier to build the wall along the state’s southern border.
The bill, known as SB 12, would streamline the permitting process for building the wall by exempting it from certain environmental regulations. Proponents of the bill argue that this would help expedite the construction process and better protect the state from illegal immigration and drug trafficking.
Critics, however, have raised concerns about the potential environmental impact of the wall and the impact it could have on local communities. They argue that the bill would give the federal government too much power to bypass important environmental protections.
As the debate over border security continues to heat up, the fate of SB 12 remains uncertain. But one thing is clear: with the new administration in office, the issue of the border wall is likely to remain a hot topic for the foreseeable future.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration Monday ended use of a border app called CBP One that has allowed nearly 1 million people to legally enter the United States with eligibility to work.
A notice on the website of Customs and Border Protection Monday just after Trump was sworn in let users know that the app that had been used to allow migrants to schedule appointments at eight southwest border ports of entry is no longer available. The notice said that existing appointments have been cancelled.
The move adheres to a promise Trump made during his campaign and will please critics who say it was an overly generous magnet for more people to come to Mexico’s border with the United States.
The CBP One app has been wildly popular. It is an online lottery system to give appointments to 1,450 people a day at eight border crossings. They enter on immigration “parole,” a presidential authority that Joe Biden used more than any other president since it was introduced in 1952.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump will sign a series of executive orders designed to beef up security at the southern border by relying more on the U.S. military and redefining who gets to become an American, preparing to make good on his defining political promise to crack down on immigration.
But actual execution of such a far-reaching immigration agenda is certain to face legal and logistical challenges.
“I will declare a national emergency at our southern border. All illegal entry will immediately be halted, and we will begin the process of returning millions and millions of criminal aliens back to the places in which they came,” said Trump to thunderous applause Monday as he spoke during his inauguration moments after being sworn into office.
The orders were also previewed Monday by an incoming White House official before Trump takes office will aim to end asylum access, send troops to the U.S.-Mexico border, suspend the refugee program, force people seeking asylum to wait in Mexico and end birthright citizenship. There was little detail on specifically how these broad plans would be executed.
Many of the steps echoed previous ones during Trump’s first administration that also faced lawsuits. Others — like the effort to end the constitutional right to automatic citizenship for anyone born in the U.S. — marked sweeping new strategies that are expected to elicit pushback in the courts.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity to provide details before the orders are signed, some of them soon after he’s inaugurated Monday.
Immigrant communities around the country have been bracing for a crackdown that the incoming Republican president had been promising throughout his campaign and again at a rally Sunday.
AP correspondent Ed Donahue reports on Inauguration Day’s impact on immigration.
The orders previewed were less specific about how Trump will fulfill his pledge of mass deportations of at least 11 million people already in the country illegally. One edict will equip immigration officers with “authorities needed” to enforce the law.
Trump and his aides have repeatedly said they would scrap President Joe Biden’s deportation priorities, which focused on people with criminal records and those who are national security threats, to include all people without legal status.
A key announcement was the effort to end birthright citizenship — one of Trump’s most sweeping immigration efforts yet.
Birthright citizenship means anyone born in the United States automatically becomes an American citizen, a right enshrined in the 14th Amendment that was ratified in 1868 in the wake of the Civil War and assured citizenship for all, including Black people.
It applies to children born to someone in the country illegally or in the U.S. on a tourist or student visa who plans to return to their home country. Trump’s effort to end that right is certain to face steep legal challenges, and the incoming White House official provided no information on how he intends to carry it out.
Trump also intends to suspend refugee resettlement for four months, the official said. That’s a program that for decades has allowed hundreds of thousands of people from around the world fleeing war and persecution to come to the United States.
Trump similarly suspended the refugee program at the beginning of his first term, and then after reinstating it, cut the numbers of refugees admitted into the country every year.
The Trump administration also intends to designate criminal cartels as foreign terrorist organizations and specifically aims to crack down on the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua and will remove those gang members from the country. The homegrown street gang was born in Venezuela but has become a menace even on American soil and exploded into the U.S. presidential campaign amid a spree of kidnappings, extortion and other crimes throughout the western hemisphere tied to a mass exodus of Venezuelan migrants.
The incoming administration also will order an end to releasing migrants in the U.S. while they await immigration court hearings, a practice known as “catch-and-release,” but officials didn’t say how they would pay for the enormous costs associated with detention.
Trump plans to “end asylum,” presumably going beyond what Biden has done to severely restrict it. It is unclear what the incoming administration will do with people of nationalities whose countries don’t take back their citizens, such as Nicaragua and Venezuela.
And it would reinstate the first Trump administration’s “Remain in Mexico” policy, which forced about 70,000 asylum-seekers to wait in Mexico for hearings in U.S. immigration court. That measure would require cooperation from Mexico, and it is unclear how it jibes with pledges to end asylum altogether.
Mexico, a country integral to any American effort to limit illegal immigration, weighed in Monday morning, indicating they were prepared to receive asylum seekers that the U.S. makes wait in Mexico while emphasizing that there should be some sort of online application allowing them to schedule appointments at the U.S. border.
Currently there’s an online process called CBP One that was used by the Biden administration that has allowed hundreds of thousands of migrants into the country to pursue asylum claims. Although there was no specific reference to CBP One during the call with reporters Monday, incoming officials have repeatedly said they will ax it immediately along with another program that allowed 30,000 migrants from four countries to enter the U.S. provided they have a financial sponsor.
Trump will order the government, with Defense Department assistance, to “finish” construction of the border wall, though the official didn’t say how much territory that would cover. Barriers currently span about 450 miles (720 kilometers), slightly more than one-third of the border. Many areas that aren’t covered are in Texas, including inhospitable terrain where migrants rarely cross.
Sending troops to the border is a strategy that Trump has used before, as has Biden. In 2018, Trump deployed 800 active-duty troops to assist Border Patrol personnel in processing large migrant caravans. And in 2023, with the U.S. preparing to end pandemic-era restrictions on immigration, the Biden administration sent 1,500 active-duty troops to the U.S.-Mexico border.
Both administrations also used National Guard troops along the border.
The official did not say how many troops Trump was planning to send, saying that would be up to the secretary of defense or what their role would be when they get there.
Historically, troops have been used to back up Border Patrol agents, who are responsible for securing the nearly 2,000-mile border separating the U.S. from Mexico and not in roles that put them in direct contact with migrants.
Critics have said that sending troops to the border sends the signal that migrants are a threat.
In a shocking move, President Trump has announced the end of CBP One, a border app introduced by the Biden administration that granted legal entry to nearly 1 million migrants. The decision to terminate the program has sparked controversy and outrage among advocates for immigrant rights.
CBP One was created as a response to the overwhelming number of asylum seekers at the southern border and aimed to streamline the asylum process by providing a digital platform for migrants to apply for legal entry. The program was praised for its efficiency and effectiveness in processing applications and granting legal status to those in need.
However, President Trump has argued that CBP One was a “disastrous policy” that encouraged illegal immigration and exploited loopholes in the immigration system. He has vowed to crack down on illegal border crossings and prioritize national security over humanitarian concerns.
The termination of CBP One has left many migrants in limbo, unsure of their legal status and facing the threat of deportation. Advocates for immigrant rights have condemned the decision, calling it a cruel and heartless move that will only further exacerbate the humanitarian crisis at the border.
As the debate over immigration policy rages on, the fate of nearly 1 million migrants who were granted legal entry through CBP One hangs in the balance. The future of America’s immigration system remains uncertain, as the Trump administration continues to implement strict measures to curb illegal immigration.
Tags:
Trump administration ends CBP One app
Biden-era border app discontinued by Trump
Border app CBP One terminated by Trump administration
Trump ends program granting legal entry to migrants
CBP One app discontinued, impacting nearly 1 million migrants
Trump administration halts border app for migrants
Biden-era CBP One program terminated by Trump
Trump ends CBP One app, affecting migrant legal entry
Border app CBP One stopped by Trump administration
Trump administration cancels program allowing legal entry for migrants
Jorge Luis Jiménez and his wife did exactly what the US government asked of them when they spent months trying over and over again to get an appointment to cross the border, after risking everything to flee Venezuela.
Now they may be easy targets in Donald Trump’s anti-immigration crackdown – despite living and working legally in the US.
Even more vulnerable are those still waiting on the Mexican side of the border in treacherous conditions, trying daily to score one of the coveted appointments with US immigration agents that are offered via the government’s mobile phone app called CBP One.
Trump has repeatedly vowed to end the CBP One appointment system almost immediately upon taking office. And in an interview with Fox News, he said he would go so far as to revoke legal permissions for those already stateside.
For Jiménez, home in Venezuela is such a beautiful place. But life was paralyzing under Nicolás Maduro’s authoritarian regime.
So Jiménez and his wife, Milexsa, set out for the United States last summer. They trudged through the deadly Darién Gap that links South and Central America, then traveled from town to town until they reached Mexico City, where a friend welcomed them to a crowded two-room apartment and they found jobs at a local market.
Mexico was a necessary stopover. Only there could Jiménez and his wife be within the geofencing to enter a virtual lottery for one of the 1,450 daily appointments offered by the US government via the official app, CBP One, a name that has even been trademarked. Getting an appointment allows migrants to come into the US legally through the designated ports of entry along the US-Mexico border, with scope to begin the asylum application process.
Jiménez said that risking crossing on their own initiative – through the river that divides Texas and Mexico or through the desert, or elsewhere, often by relying on human smugglers – and then turning themselves in to the US border patrol wasn’t ever an option for him and Milexsa.
A view of the US-Mexico border from the Sonoran desert in January. Photograph: Thalia Juarez/The Guardian
It took four months of poring over the app in Mexico City, but the couple eventually received an appointment and made their way by bus to the US’s south-west border.
They saw others like them at the border get kidnapped by organized crime gangs and paid 3,000 Mexican pesos (about $145) in bribes to avoid being held themselves. By the time they reached Texas last October, they had nothing left except permission to live and work in the US.
But soon after, they had received work permits and had found a new home in the midwest. They got jobs at a plastic factory, while their legal permissions allow them time to apply for asylum or some other form of legal relief in the US.
If Trump scraps CBPOne “that would be cutting off the dream of many people”, Jiménez said, thinking of those still waiting south of the border.
And if his own permission to stay and work stateside is suddenly revoked, too?
“That would be – no – a really serious, serious, serious, serious thing to do to someone,” he said solemnly.
Like Jiménez and Milexsa, more than 900,000 people have received appointments to present themselves at an official port of entry by using CBP One in the last two years. Named for the agency that runs it, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the app launched in 2020 during Trump’s first term. But it wasn’t until January 2023 that officials incorporated capabilities for individual migrants to apply to enter the country with pre-scheduled appointments.
Through this highly limited appointment system, the Biden administration hoped that CBP One could provide a more orderly process for people to request asylum at the US-Mexico border. Incentives include a year or two of “parole”, a legal permission to temporarily stay in the US, with leave to apply for work permits immediately.
“It’s important for people to realize, if you came in through CBP One, then you entered the country legally,” said Jon Ewing, a spokesperson with the mayor’s office in Denver, Colorado, which has worked with the local community to help CBP One entrants apply for work permits.
But Trump and his allies disagree. In addition to Trump’s comments on ending the app, vice-president-elect JD Vance has called CBP One “the facilitation of illegal immigration” and considers people in the US on parole “illegal aliens” – a pejorative for unauthorized immigrants, who are subject to deportation.
Yet to de-legalize people’s immigration documents and explicitly target those in the US lawfully for deportation would be “an embarrassment to this country”, said Tom Cartwright, an advocate for refugees with the group Witness at the Border.
“It would just be the most heinous act of betrayal of trust that I can think of,” he continued, “for the United States to take vulnerable people and revoke their parole when they acted in good faith and they did everything that this country asked them to do.”
People from Colombia, Venezuela and Mexico await their CBP One appointments at the Casa de Esperanza shelter in Sonoyta, Mexico, in January. Photograph: Thalia Juarez/The Guardian
Many of those who have come through CBP One had already tried to “get in line” for visas in their home countries before being forced to flee imminent danger, and then persevered with waiting for appointments to present themselves legally despite facing serious threats in Mexico, said Jesús de la Torre, assistant director for global migration at the Hope Border Institute.
Those still in Mexico “are not safe”, De la Torre added. “And they are not safe until they literally cross to the US side of the border. We’ve seen people kidnapped while they were waiting in line to be processed for their appointment.”
In a group of more than 100 migrants surveyed for a Hope Border Institute report, four out of five reported experiencing violence by criminal groups or state employees during their journeys in Mexico, De la Torre said. Other human rights organizations have documented people suffering kidnappings, torture, extortion and sexual assault while awaiting their CBP One appointments.
“After they do all that, they endure all that pain, all that suffering, then you are telling them that there is no option for them any more?” said De la Torre. “Or that if they cross with that pathway that you told them to, now you’re gonna prioritize them for deportation?”
At the Casa de Esperanza migrant shelter in Sonoyta, a small, dusty Mexican border town in the state of Sonora which faces the Organ Pipe national monument in Arizona, 140 people from Mexico, Venezuela, Honduras and Colombia were among those waiting earlier this month for a CBP One appointment. Some had already been waiting for eight months, they said, yet remained hopeful that Trump will not follow through with his threats to shut down the appointment system.
One family at the shelter fled their home in Guanajuato last June – a once tranquil state in central Mexico where organized crime and homicides have risen in the past few years.
“There’s a lot of rumors that the app will close but we’ve spent so much time and money to be here that I can’t give up hope. Our goal is to reach Fresno [in northern California], where my husband has family, from there we are prepared to work anywhere and do anything. I have faith in God that we’ll make it,” said the mother, 55, who asked the Guardian to withhold her identity for her security.
A woman from Guanajuato awaits her CBP One appointment at the Casa de Esperanza shelter in Sonoyta, a border town in Sonora, Mexico, in January. Photograph: Thalia Juarez/The Guardian
The mandatory use of the CBP One mobile application as largely the only accepted means of seeking asylum in the US has been condemned by Amnesty International as a “violation of international human rights and refugee law”. Still, it brought some order and relief for some asylum seekers – and a boost to the US economy, which some advocates believe make the application too costly to cut.
“CBP One is a machiavellian system that changed the dynamic of migration, guaranteeing cheap labor and taxes for the US but few rights for the migrants,” said Aaron Flores Morales, co-director of the Casa de Esperanza.
“Trump will deport people to demonstrate his power but I don’t think he will cancel CBP One because the US economy will collapse without the steady flow of cheap migrant labor. Immigration was a principal part of Trump’s campaign but he has far bigger problems to face as president,” he added.
There’s no question that the Trump administration can revoke the legal protections of people who already entered the US through CBP One should officials so choose, said Muzaffar Chishti, a New York-based senior fellow at the Migration Policy Institute. But the law would suggest they will at least need to proceed case by case and allow for some form of rebuttal, which even if they issued boilerplate parole cancelation notices probably couldn’t happen overnight.
But if he wants to, Trump can discontinue use of the CBP One app on day one, meaning potential legal limbo for those who have secured appointments for dates on or after the 20 January inauguration.
“All prior practice would show they have to honor it,” Chishti said of the upcoming appointments, “but I can’t tell you that that’s what this administration is going to do.”
In Denver, Ewing said his community was still gearing up for more work authorization legal clinics this month and next. So far, they have helped roughly 4,400 people apply for their work permits, about 3,700 of whom came into the US by using CBP One.
That’s thanks in part to about 1,100 volunteers who have already put in over 13,000 hours – and are still showing up to help.
Ewing believes it would be “antithetical to our values” if Trump negates all that, perhaps in the blink of an eye.
For those who risked so much and tried so valiantly to make a legal entry: “We gave them our word, and that should mean something,” he said.
In a recent turn of events at the US-Mexico border, a group of individuals who followed all the rules to legally enter the United States are now facing the threat of deportation by the Trump administration.
These individuals went through the proper channels, applied for asylum, and were granted entry into the country. They followed all the necessary steps and were hopeful for a better future in the United States. However, their hopes have been dashed as President Trump’s administration has decided to target them for deportation.
This cruel and heartless decision is tearing families apart and putting lives at risk. These individuals came to the United States seeking safety and a better life, only to face the threat of being sent back to dangerous and unstable situations in their home countries.
It is important to remember that these individuals are not criminals or threats to society. They simply followed the rules and sought refuge in a country that has prided itself on being a beacon of hope for those in need.
As Americans, we must stand up against these unjust and inhumane actions. We must demand that our government treat these individuals with the compassion and dignity they deserve. Deporting them would be a grave injustice and a stain on our nation’s values.
It is time to speak out and hold our government accountable. These individuals followed the rules to enter the US, and now it is our duty to ensure that they are treated fairly and with the respect they deserve. #ProtectAsylumSeekers #NoDeportations
