DOJ Charges 11 Illegal Aliens From Caravan of Truth For Crossing US Border

The Trump administration is scrambling to respond to the Caravan of Truth:

1.) Vice President Mike Pence traveled to the US-Mexico border to lament our weak immigration laws:

“Calexico (United States) (AFP) – US Vice President Mike Pence blasted “weak” and “ineffective” immigration laws Monday during a trip to the border with Mexico, as a caravan of immigrants two hours to the west prepared to claim asylum in America.

Pence’s remarks came as he toured a construction site for a barrier in the Californian border town of Calexico, 120 miles (200 kilometers) east of the San Diego-Tijuana crossing where the group of at least 150 people has amassed.

“I stand before you today when most of the attention of the nation has been focused on the so-called caravan,” Pence said.

“As the president said on Saturday night, this situation is a direct result of our weak immigration laws and our porous border.” …”

2.) The Department of Justice has charged 11 illegal aliens from the Caravan of Truth with illegally entering the United States:

“The Department of Justice filed complaints on Monday against 11 members of the “caravan” from Central America, charging them with illegally entering the U.S., CNN first reported and Axios confirmed with a federal law enforcement official.

Why it matters: This is the first major action on Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ “zero tolerance” policy he announced last month. “Illegally entering this country will not be rewarded, but will instead be met with the full prosecutorial powers of the Department of Justice,” Sessions said in a statement at the time. …”

3.) President Trump sent out a new tweet about the caravan and attempted to shift the blame onto swing state Democrats:

The migrant ‘caravan’ that is openly defying our border shows how weak & ineffective U.S. immigration laws are. Yet Democrats like Jon Tester continue to support the open borders agenda – Tester even voted to protect Sanctuary Cities. We need lawmakers who will put America First.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 30, 2018

4.) Finally, the Border Patrol has begun processing the first 8 individuals from the caravan:

“TIJUANA, Mexico — Several members of the Latin American migrant caravan that has enraged President Trump were allowed to step onto United States territory to apply for asylum late Monday, easing a border standoff that had lasted more than a day and marking the beginning of the final chapter of the group’s monthlong odyssey.

At about 7 p.m. local time, eight migrants who, like most of the caravan’s participants, said they were fleeing violence in their homeland, passed through the metal gate separating Tijuana from San Diego, entered the immigration checkpoint and began the process to petition for sanctuary, caravan organizers said. …”

As we have already seen, President Trump ordered the National Guard to be deployed to the border earlier this month in order to boost his image of being “tough on immigration.” The caravan has already exposed the fact though that we are legally obligated to deal with these people.