Under Oath, Biden’s Border Patrol Chief Speaks Truth

Border Patrol Chief Raul Ortiz says Biden administration policies are to blame for the unprecedented surge of illegal aliens into the U.S. because there are “no consequences.” Ortiz’s admission, made under oath, contradicts his previous position, when he criticized Texas border enforcement initiatives and said the job should be left to the “experts.”

In a deposition recorded as part of discovery for a lawsuit filed by Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody against the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Ortiz said he believes illegal border crossings will increase at an exponential rate.

That’s not news to anyone who has paid attention to the surge in illegal immigration during President Joe Biden’s tenure. But Ortiz’s candor – or at least his reluctance to commit perjury — was nevertheless noteworthy, coming from a Biden appointee with three decades of law enforcement experience.

It’s also notable how Ortiz’s position has shifted. In an interview last October, he called border-enforcement operations by Texas authorities “a tremendous concern.” “I really would prefer to see border security left to the border-security experts,” he told the Texas Monthly.

The expertise that Ortiz speaks of resulted in the release of 60,000 illegal aliens into the U.S. in July 2021. Those numbers have not declined, which is why Florida is suing DHS over its failure to enforce this country’s immigration laws.

According to federal documents submitted during discovery, an estimated 48,000 migrants traveling to Florida failed to check in with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. “The federal government now has no idea of their location or activity — even though most of them are legally inadmissible,” Moody charges.

Attempting to plug the southern border gap opened by Washington, the state of Texas launched Operation Lone Star, a multiagency effort that has apprehended more than 300,800 migrants, including some 19,400 criminal arrests. Since April, Texas has also bused thousands of aliens to the East Coast.

“The federal government has completely dismantled every single policy that was working at slowing down mass migration prior to 2021, and every tool that was necessary for law enforcement to secure the border,” says Chris Olivarez, a lieutenant with the Texas Department of Public Safety.

If, with his epiphany, Raul Ortiz should happen to be relieved of his duties at the U.S. Border Patrol, Texas has the help-wanted sign out.