The Biden Administration’s Border Security Failures Are Drawing Record Numbers Of Illegal Aliens From All Over The World, Leaving American Law Enforcement Overwhelmed
SENATE REPUBLICAN LEADER MITCH McCONNELL (R-KY): “It is impossible to ignore the crisis at our southern border that’s erupted on Washington Democrats’ watch: Back-to-back record-setting years that saw millions upon millions of illegal arrivals at the border. And historic quantities of fentanyl and other lethal drugs pouring across to decimate American communities. Let’s remember where this crisis came from. President Biden campaigned on open-borders policies. His message was so compelling that crowds literally showed up at the southern border with his campaign logo on their shirts. As one put it back then, the President had, quote, ‘promised us that everything was going to change.’” (Leader McConnell, Remarks, 11/15/2023)
LEADER McCONNELL: “[T]his is the Administration that canceled commonsense policies like ‘Remain in Mexico,’ shelved DHS resources meant for border wall construction, and abandoned overstretched border enforcement personnel to contend with a tidal wave of mass migration. Today, cleaning up this Administration’s mess at the southern border is matter of urgent national security. And I’m grateful to the group of Senate Republicans including Senator Lankford, Senator Graham, and Senator Cotton who have been working in good faith on substantive policy reforms to bring the crisis under control. The goal here is simple: Slow the flow; and stop the catch-and-release asylum system that’s overrunning border communities and blue cities, alike. This crisis isn’t crying out for boatloads of new taxpayer dollars. Just commonsense policy reform. Unfortunately, Senate Democrats do not appear ready to admit this reality. They’re apparently not ready to seriously address asylum abuse.” (Leader McConnell, Remarks, 11/15/2023)
Senate Republicans Are Committed To Fighting For Commonsense Border Security Reforms
SENATE REPUBLICAN WHIP JOHN THUNE (R-SD): “[T]he president’s recent supplemental funding request has not left me hopeful that the administration is suddenly going to become more effective. Potentially billions in reimbursement for blue states struggling to house illegal immigrants won’t do a single thing to solve the crisis we’re facing at the border. And while the president’s proposal does include some funding that would actually go toward security, funding alone is not enough. We need meaningful policy changes…” (Sen. Thune, Remarks, 11/01/2023)
SENATE REPUBLICAN CONFERENCE CHAIR JOHN BARRASSO (R-WY): “Joe Biden and the Democrats refuse to admit that we have an urgent crisis at the southern border. They refuse to admit that the crisis and the weakness is brought upon by the fact that they have ignored or reversed rules and activities that have worked in the past to secure the border.” (Sen. Barrasso, Press Conference, 11/14/2023)
SEN. SUSAN COLLINS (R-ME), Senate Appropriations Committee Vice Chair: “Targeted funding must be accompanied by policy changes that ensure our borders are secure…” (Senate Appropriations Committee Hearing, 11/08/2023)
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SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC), Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member: “I reject the idea this is a global phenomenon problem. I think you’re misdiagnosing the problem. This is policy changes you all instituted that I told you wouldn’t work and we now need to fix that. Trend lines: 2020, 458,000 encounters. 2023, 2.5 million. We need to change that don’t we? That trend line.”
SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS: “We most certainly do.” (Senate Appropriations Committee Hearing, 11/08/2023)
SEN. JAMES LANKFORD (R-OK): “Republicans in the Senate this past weekend released a very simple proposal to deal with what we all know are the problems. Closing the loopholes in the law that have been exploited. And yes it deals with asylum and yes it deals with withholding because those are the areas that are being exploited. … The question is, do Democrat senators see it. That’s really the issue now. Everyone else seems to see it and admit to it.” (Sen. Lankford, Remarks, 11/06/2023)
SEN. SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO (R-WV): “We are trying, I think, to offer the administration, we being the Republicans here in the Senate, offering the administration substantive policy changes that will bring these numbers down.” (Senate Appropriations Committee Hearing, 11/08/2023)
SEN. KATIE BRITT (R-AL): “When we talk about this, we don’t have to manage the border as it says in one of your requests here, we actually need to secure it.” (Senate Appropriations Committee Hearing, 11/08/2023)
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Border Encounters With Illegal Aliens ‘Hit The Highest Ever Number For October’
“Migrant encounters at the southern border hit the highest ever number for October last month, with more than 240,000 people encountered…” (“Migrant Encounters At Southern Border Set New Record For October: Data,” Fox News, 11/14/2023)
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS: “[C]rossings remain unusually high…” (The Associated Press, 11/14/2023)
Illegal Aliens Now Run Towards Law Enforcement, ‘Knowing That They Will Likely Be Released In A Few Days To Await Court Dates That Could Be Years Away’
“For years, migrants who crossed illegally into the United States would often run away from law enforcement, but now once reaching the US most run to authorities, according to observers. They’re eager to be processed, knowing that they will likely be released in a few days to await court dates that could be years away….Most of the migrants entering San Diego County appear familiar with the process, as though they’ve been prepared by others who’ve successfully arrived before them. They gather at various spots on the US side and await CBP officials … [B]uses first take them just a few miles to area detention centers to be processed over a few days. They’re then transported north to transit hubs in San Diego, where county officials say the vast majority travel to other cities.” (“They Live Near San Diego. Migrants Pass Through Their Back Yards Almost Nightly,” CNN, 11/13/2023)
The Draw Of Easy Illegal Entry Into The United States Has Resulted In Huge Numbers Of Migrants Overwhelming Countries From Panama All The Way Through Mexico
“The southwestern border of the U.S. has struggled to cope with increasing numbers of migrants from South America who move quickly through the Darien Gap between Colombia and Panama before heading north. By September, 420,000 migrants, aided by Colombian smugglers, had passed through the gap in the year to date, Panamanian figures showed.” (“Caravan Of 3,000 Migrants Blocks Highway In Southern Mexico,” The Associated Press, 11/08/2023)
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THE WASHINGTON POST: ‘U.S.-Bound Migrants Are Overwhelming Mexico’ (The Washington Post, 10/20/2023)
“[Mexico] is struggling with a migration crisis of its own, as historic numbers of asylum seekers cross its southern border. As many as 6,000 migrants a day have lined up outside government offices in southern Mexico — some seeking refuge in this country, but many others headed for the United States. That’s up to 10 times as many as in the spring. Security forces have pulled more than 27,000 undocumented migrants off trains in the past month alone.” (“U.S.-Bound Migrants Are Overwhelming Mexico,” The Washington Post, 10/20/2023)
“Until recently, the migrants reaching the U.S. border were mostly Mexicans and Central Americans. Now there’s a global outpouring of economic and political refugees funneling through Mexico. The number of South American migrants reaching Mexico this year has surpassed the number of Central Americans for the first time since record-keeping began. Mexico went from logging fewer than 2,000 South Americans a year for most of the past decade to more than 176,000 in the first eight months of 2023. Many are traveling with families.” (“U.S.-Bound Migrants Are Overwhelming Mexico,” The Washington Post, 10/20/2023)
‘The Southern Border Has Just Become A Staging Ground For Migrants From All Parts Of The World To Come To The U.S. Most Quickly’
“‘The Southern border has just become a staging ground for migrants from all parts of the world to come to the U.S. most quickly,’ said Muzaffar Chishti, a lawyer and the director of non-partisan research group Migration Policy Institute’s New York office.” (NBC News, 11/14/2023)
“Border Patrol agents struggle communicating with many of them, instead relying on hand signals or smartphone translation apps – assuming the cell signal is strong enough. Spanish and English are no longer sufficient, as local volunteers have documented people from more than 40 countries crossing in recent months, including China, Turkey and Uzbekistan.” (“They Live Near San Diego. Migrants Pass Through Their Back Yards Almost Nightly,” CNN, 11/13/2023)
Apprehensions Of Illegal Aliens From Asia And Africa TRIPLED During The Last Fiscal Year
“Hundreds of thousands of migrants from all over the world are making their way to the Southwest border, with U.S. and Mexican authorities reporting a surge in apprehensions of people from Asia and Africa as human smuggling networks widen their reach across the globe. Arrests at the Southwest border of migrants from China, India and other distant countries, including Mauritania and Senegal, tripled to 214,000 during the fiscal year that ended in September from 70,000 in the previous fiscal year, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data. Fewer than 19,000 migrants from Asia and Africa were apprehended in the fiscal year ended September 2021.” (“Migrants Are Flocking to the U.S. From All Over the Globe,” The Wall Street Journal, 11/04/2023)
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“Travelers say they exchange information and share videos of U.S.-bound routes on Tik Tok and Facebook, while smugglers offer lodging and travel agencies advertise transport services. Most Asian and African migrants make multiple airport stopovers in what are coming to be known as ‘donkey flights’ to reach countries such as Brazil, Ecuador or Nicaragua, which have few or no visa requirements for some nationalities. Once they set foot in Latin America, they move north in buses or cars and stay at hotels booked by smuggling organizations. Many wear bracelets similar to those of an all-inclusive resort, with inscriptions that identify the organization that coordinated and charged them for the trip, Mexican authorities say.” (“Migrants Are Flocking to the U.S. From All Over the Globe,” The Wall Street Journal, 11/04/2023)
“For the second year in a row, arrests by the Border Patrol at the U.S. Southern border surpassed two million. Most of them, almost nine out of 10 apprehensions, are of migrants from Latin America and the Caribbean. But the surge in so-called extracontinental migrants poses a challenge for the U.S. because deporting migrants to Africa and Asia is time-consuming, expensive and sometimes not possible.” (“Migrants Are Flocking to the U.S. From All Over the Globe,” The Wall Street Journal, 11/04/2023)
CAROLINE COUNTY, Va. — A sprawling pasture in Caroline County where racing legend Secretariat once grazed as a young colt will be protected from development forever, thanks to a farmer’s dedication to preserving Virginia’s equine heritage.
Kevin Engel, who owns Engel Family Farms, has placed The Cove in Doswell under a permanent conservation easement with the Capital Region Land Conservancy. The 350-acre property, which includes forestland adjacent to Secretariat’s birthplace at the State Fairgrounds, will remain agricultural land in perpetuity.
“This is part of our family. Part of the history of the state. Part of the history of this country,” Engel said.
AP and WTVR
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Kevin Engel, who owns Engel Family Farms, has placed The Cove in Doswell under a permanent conservation easement with the Capital Region Land Conservancy.
The Cove holds special significance as the place where the future Triple Crown champion Secretariat first stretched his legs before his legendary 1973 racing season. Leeanne Ladin with Secretariat for Virginia, an authority on the famous thoroughbred, confirmed the historical importance of the site.
“You can feel the history. That is where Secretariat grazed and played as a young colt,” Ladin said. “There has still never been quite anything like it.”
Engel began farming at The Cove in 1982 and developed a friendship with Secretariat’s trailblazing owner, the late Penny Chenery. In 2023, his family purchased the property to ensure its preservation.
“That was the time where I just wanted to come out by myself and look and say wow we finally got it done and give thanks for that,” Engel said.
The conservation easement means no solar farms, subdivisions or data centers can ever be built where Secretariat once played.
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Parker Agelasto with the Capital Region Land Conservancy praised Engel’s vision, noting the timing is crucial as Central Virginia faces rapid development pressure.
“Central Virginia in the last few years has been the fastest growing region of the whole state. We have seen some of our individual counties being the fastest growing in the nation,” Agelasto said.
The property has been an active farm for hundreds of years, making its preservation even more significant for Virginia’s agricultural heritage.
“Where we are is remarkable for its history because it has been an active farm property for hundreds of years,” Agelasto said.
For Engel, protecting The Cove represents something more valuable than potential development profits.
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“Money is not everything. It helps, but I want to build something that goes way beyond me,” Engel said. “I want something that sticks around forever.”
The farmer, who describes himself as a Secretariat devotee, was instrumental in bringing a bronze statue of the champion to Ashland in 2024. Now he can ensure future generations will experience the same pastoral landscape that shaped America’s greatest racehorse.
“There are only 50 states in this country, but there is only one state that Secretariat came from. This is it! And this is the spot,” Engel said. “We need to keep this around forever.”
Ladin expressed relief knowing this piece of racing history will be protected.
“It is such a wonderful thing that he and his family did because that really is preserving a special piece of Meadow history and Virginia history absolutely,” Ladin said.
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The Cove at Meadow Farm in Caroline County now stands as a permanent testament to Virginia’s equine legacy, where visitors can walk the same fields where a legend once roamed.
“Every piece of land has a story to tell, but you have to let it tell the story. And in this instance, this land is forever connected to Secretariat,” Agelasto said.
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MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — A half hour or so had passed since West Virginia men’s basketball coach Ross Hodge recorded his first Big 12 win with the Mountaineers holding off Cincinnati 62-60 on Tuesday night.
Hodge expressed feeling fortunate that his team was able to overcome a late lapse where saw a six-point lead became a five-point deficit, and WVU (10-5, 1-1) avoided falling victim to a poor finish that was problematic in narrow neutral-site setbacks to Clemson and Ohio State.
Yet as is generally the case in the Big 12, there was little time to savor the result, and it was time to turn the attention to No. 22 Kansas, Saturday’s opponent for a noon tip inside Hope Coliseum.
The matchup against KU and its two-time National Champion head coach Bill Self airs on FOX.
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“I have a ton of respect for coach Self and Kansas. Thankful, honestly. That would be the emotion. Thankful to be in this league,” Hodge said. “This is the third best basketball league on the planet. It’s the NBA, the Euro League and the Big 12. With that comes really good catches and really good players. More than anything, an appreciation and thankfulness. Once the ball gets tipped, it really is like your team is trying to out-execute his team and you don’t spend a lot of time thinking about any of that other than how can I help our guys execute better in these stretches and play better defense. That’s where your mind is.”
Jan 6, 2026; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers head coach Ross Hodge celebrates after defeating the Cincinnati Bearcats at Hope Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-Imagn Images
For at least one night, Hodge was able to breathe a sigh of relief after late three-pointers from both Honor Huff and Treysen Eaglestaff, the latter of which came with the shot clock winding down in a well-defended attempt out of desperation that was instrumental in helping the Mountaineers prevail past the Bearcats.
Later Tuesday night, KU (11-4, 1-1) overcame a 15-point deficit with inside 5 minutes remaining, staging one of its infamous improbable rallies at Allen Fieldhouse to defeat TCU in overtime, 104-100.
“We didn’t guard. We didn’t rebound,” Self said. “Our body language stunk for a good portion of the game. We played with different energy levels individually throughout the game. We were spectators and didn’t create activity. There were a lot of things we didn’t do the other night, but at the end of the day, we should show ourselves that we can do it, because we did it under the most intense, pressure-packed situations.
“That’s why the last 4 minutes of a game are the most important 4 minutes, because if you make a mistake, you can’t recover. Even though we made a couple mistakes in the last 4 minutes, it was still about as well-played as any stretch that we’d had during the game and when it counted the most.”
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Self has been displeased with the Jayhawks’ defense over two Big 12 games, with KU allowing 181 points, including 168 through regulation.
“We just haven’t been connected on the defensive end like we were prior to Christmas,” he said.
WVU presents a quality chance for KU to rectify its defensive issues as the Mountaineers are 15th among 16 Big 12 teams in overall scoring (74.1 points per game) and scoring within Big 12 games (60.5). At 45.4 percent, WVU ranks 14th in the league in field goal percentage.
But Self knows his team must be aware at all times of Mountaineer guard Honor Huff, who leads the conference with 60 three-pointers and made 6 of 10 against UC after going 1 for 8 the previous outing at Iowa State.
Huff has at least four made threes in eight games this season as well as another in which he shot 3 of 4 from distance. Additionally, Eaglestaff is 14 for 34 from long range over the last five contests.
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“They let their shooters shoot it and they have three guys that can, but two of them really can and will shoot a lot of them,” Self said. “We have to do a great job of defending the arc.”
The Mountaineers continue to be solid defensively and rank second to Houston in scoring defense among Big 12 teams at 61.5 points. WVU held Cincinnati to 22 for 62 shooting and 10 two-point field goals.
“You have to be able to play long stretches of quality basketball to win games. We were fortunate to win if I’m being really honest,” Hodge said. “Our first shot defense was good. Holding a team to [35] percent from the floor is good enough to win. [WVU’s] nine assists to 15 turnovers is not going to win you games a lot of nights. We did out-rebound them [37-33]. We got to the free-throw line. We didn’t necessarily make them at the rate we need to [7 for 13], but we made the big ones late.”
Jan 6, 2026; Lawrence, Kansas, USA; Kansas Jayhawks guard Darryn Peterson (22) shoots as TCU Horned Frogs forward Xavier Edmonds (24) defends during the second half of the game at Allen Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images
The Mountaineers will be tasked with trying to limit one of college basketball’s most feared offensive players and top pro prospects in 6-foot-6 KU freshman Darryn Peterson.
Peterson has played in only six games due to a hamstring injury and scored a career-high 32 points against the Horned Frogs, but sat out the extra session with cramping.
He is averaging 22.5 points on 50 percent shooting and has made multiple treys in all six games, while shooting better than 43 percent beyond the arc.
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“He feels good. He’s full speed,” Self said.
Tre White, a 6-7 swingman, is the team’s second-leading scorer at 15 points, followed by 6-10 forward Flory Bidunga (14.3 points, 9.1 rebounds) and guard Melvin Council Jr. (13.7 ppg).
WVU, which has yet to record a Quad 1 or Quad 2 victory, is 10-0 at home this season and 7-5 against the Jayhawks in Morgantown.
“In this league, you better take care of home,” Hodge said. “It’s the Big 12. Every game is going to be challenging in its own way.”
Dallas Police Central Business District officers recovered 39 bags of crack cocaine during an arrest Tuesday.
The officers, working with the U.S. Marshal’s North Texas Fugitive Task Force, seized the drugs when they arrested 40-year-old Velisa Purvis, who was wanted on four outstanding felony warrants.
Officers spotted Purvis in the 1500 block of Garrett Avenue near Old East Dallas and took her into custody.
In addition to the cocaine, officers recovered two bags of suspected methamphetamine, drug packaging, money and marijuana.
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She now faces additional charges of manufacture or delivery of a controlled substance between four grams and 200 grams and manufacture or delivery of a controlled substance between one and four grams for the crack cocaine, methamphetamine, currency, and individual packages with the intent to distribute.
