On October 5th, defenders of immigrant rights were surprised with the news that the Biden administration will expand the wall on the border with Mexico to stop the entry of illegal immigrants. For this end, funds granted by Congress since the Donald Trump government will be used. This measure occurred amid tough negotiations with Congress to prevent a government shutdown due to the delay in approving a new budget. At that time, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement that "there was no new administration policy regarding border walls. From day one, this administration has made clear that a border wall is not the answer". However, there is a gap between intention and actions, as the wall will continue to be expanded and the Texas government continues to implement a buoy fence with serpentines in the middle of the Rio Grande.

Another fissure in Democratic immigration policy emerged in late September when New York Mayor Eric Adams vented about the immigration crisis facing the city. “This issue will destroy New York”, when referring to the wave of new migrants that is putting pressure on the city’s public services.  This is a consequence of the aggressive actions of Republican governors from the south, especially Greg Abboutt (Texas) and Ron DeSantis (Florida), who began sending several buses and planes full of immigrants to cities in the Northeast and on the Pacific Coast governed by Democrats, which are considered sanctuaries for immigrants. This situation showed a split in the immigration policy of the Democrats, who until then (but also during the presidential campaign), maintained a friendlier policy towards immigrants. Adams' criticism of the federal government adds to that of Republicans, who are asking for more government assistance to deal with this recent crisis that has been plaguing their public, social and housingservices.

The New York mayor's speeches vocalized the dissatisfaction that exists among Democratic leaders in large American cities regarding Joe Biden's current immigration policy, which not only reproduces many aspects of Trump's policy, but also does not offer sufficient support to municipal governments to deal with the waves of immigrants arriving in large urban centers. In New York, for example, more than 100,000 immigrants have arrived in the city since last year, putting pressure on local housing and public services. Other cities also became destinations for immigrants, such as Washington and Boston, in addition to Chicago, many arriving by chartered transport.

It is important to emphasize that welcoming immigrants is not a homogeneous problem. Unlike New York, the city of Los Angeles deals with this situation better. In addition to being used to receiving thousands of people annually, due to its proximity to the border, many of the immigrants who arrive in the city are able to find shelter in the homes of friends and relatives, integrate economically and generally do not need to ask for help from municipal services.

Bring the border to Joe Biden

Since last year, Ron DeSantis and Greg Abbott have sent thousands of immigrants to several cities in the country governed by Democrats, with the intention of relieving border cities, which have been dealing with the influx of thousands of illegal immigrants crossing the border. As Governor Abbott, a critic of the president's immigration policy, pointed out: “I'm goingto take the border to President Biden”. According to the Texas state government website, “Operation Lone Star” is a local attempt to secure the border, preventing “smugglers, weapons and peoplefrom entering Texas”. In total, about 500 buses had been sent by July 2023, as follows: 10,000 people to Washington D.C., about 8,200 to New York, over 2,600 to Chicago, over 1,600 to Philadelphia, about 210 to Denver and about 20 to Los Angeles.

In addition to there being a real problem about how to deal with waves of immigrants coming from Mexico, Venezuela, Guatemala, Cuba, Honduras, Haiti, etc., there is a context of political confrontation in this policy of transferring people throughout the United States. Since the end of Donald Trump's government, tensions between the federal government and some Republican states have reached high levels, such as these actions by Abbott and DeSantis.

It is necessary to understand that the migration crisis was already occurring before all this political tension and has different consequences for the country's cities. This can be seen in New York, where, of the 100,000 immigrants who arrived in the city since last year, only 13,100 were sent through Texas, something that would not lead to full Republicanresponsibility.

According to information from the Border Patrol, in 2022, 2.2 million people were counted crossing the United States border illegally, a higher number than the 1.6 million recorded at the end of the 2023 fiscal year, but still very high. Furthermore, the country already has a history of high illegal immigration, as can be seen from the survey carried out by the patrol between 1990 and 2006, and during this period the number of people crossing the border always exceeded one million annually.

One point to be clarified is that the profile of new immigrants is different from those who usually crossed the border. Previously, the majority of those looking for new opportunities were unaccompanied people trying to build a life in the new country and then be able to bring their families. Now, due to the economic, social and security crisis in countries such as Venezuela, Honduras, Guatemala and Haiti, more families with children are entering the United States, seeking humanitarian and social assistance, given the difficulty of finding shelter and employment. Thus, this creates pressure on American public services, considering that in addition to the issue of housing and employment, children need to be in school and have a decent living condition.

In this way, with buses that take several immigrants to cities across the country and greater communication between this group, large cities have become the stage for these problems already discussed, which generate implications for the traditional immigration policies of large cities, such as New York. In the metropolis, it is mandatory that there are shelters to accommodate people who need them, which is an important factor in the lives of thousands of homeless people in the city. Mayor Eric Adams stated that new restrictions will be adopted in the city: immigrants will have up to 60 days to remain in shelters, and if the deadline expires, they will be evicted.

In addition to affecting the lives of more than 60,000 immigrants who are under the city's care, this measure could lead to thousands of people taking to the streets, many of them with children and unemployed. Furthermore, this action represents a clear distance from the Biden administration and democratic policies, in addition to breaking with the city's history of welcoming immigrants.

In other words, one crisis is generating another. Increased immigration is reaching other parts of the country beyond the border with Mexico, something encouraged by Republican governors' busing policy. However, this action is not the main factor behind this crisis, with large cities already being traditional destinations for these individuals, many of them with children and difficulty finding a job. In this sense, leaders of large cities, many Democrats like Mayor Eric Adams, end up criticizing the federal government and asking for more help to deal with this moment, and that some problematic actions, such as the shelter for 60 days, can be adopted. Therefore, even with the Biden government providing temporary protection to almost half a million Venezuelan immigrants (40% of those under the care of NewYork City Hall), it is possible that big cities will still continue to take desperate measures to deal with the situation, a clear contradiction between Democrats and an implicit victory for Republicans, who they want to wear down the Biden administration and his party.

The lack of a solution to the migration crisis means that this topic monopolizes the political debate, especially with a view to the 2024 elections. The current president's popularity is very low, around 40%, according to the portal ThirtyFiveEight. Unfortunately, the current functional crisis of the US political system fails to offer a solution to the crisis, neither to its origins, nor to welcoming hundreds of thousands of people seeking for a better life.