According to The Hill, there was a request made by a group of Florida Republicans to President Biden, asking for permission for the United States Navy to carry out maritime interdictions and interceptions of Haitian migrants fleeing the chaos in their country. The Republican representatives, including Matt Gaetz, Gus Biliarakis, Anna Paulina Luna and Daniel Webster, signed a letter referencing an executive order signed by former President George W. Bush to address illegal migration in the Caribbean region, asking him to declare an “anticipated mass migration of aliens en route to, or arriving off the coast of, the United States”.

They argue that a declaration similar to Executive Order 13276 is needed to strengthen the state of Florida's efforts to utilize Department of Defense ships to conduct interdictions and repatriations, preferably to Port-au-Prince, Haiti, thereby limiting the financial obligation of U.S. taxpayers. The lawmakers also mentioned comments from military officials during a hearing of the House Armed Services Committee, where the need for "increased capacity" to deal with potential mass migration was expressed, according to the publication.

The context of the crisis in Haiti is provided, with the country facing gang violence and political instability. The U.S. issued warnings to U.S. citizens to leave the country and began evacuating its embassy. Lawmakers highlighted Florida's preparedness for the potential arrival of migrants, with Gov. Ron DeSantis allocating additional resources and sending police and military reinforcements to the southern regions of the state.

The Hill article also mentions a recent interdiction of a boat carrying 25 Haitian migrants by Florida authorities. In response, a spokesperson for the National Security Council said authorities are monitoring the situation and planning contingencies to deal with a possible surge in migrants, while stressing that irregular migration across the Caribbean remains low.