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Biden Admin Asks For Government Volunteers At The Border Amid Crisis

By • March 29, 2021 3:57 pm

The administration of Democratic President Joe Biden is calling for volunteers from across the federal government to help border officials manage the surge in unaccompanied minors crossing the southern border.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has reportedly sent a memo to various federal agency heads asking them for “volunteer deployments” that could take “up to 120 days” to help with the efforts in placing children with sponsors as current staff are unable to cope up with the number coming into the country.

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“The latest OPM request asks for volunteers to ‘lend support to this humanitarian effort’ of caring for and placing unaccompanied minors in inappropriate housing,” Axios said separately.

The request for additional manpower comes as border officials have been overwhelmed with the unprecedented surge of migrant crossers at the border since the Biden administration took over — straining federal resources along the US-Mexico border.

As of March 26, Friday, more than 17,000 minors were recorded to be at government custody including over 5,000 in Border Patrol facilities that are “unfit for minors.” 

“We are actively working to screen, process and deploy these volunteers while continuing our recruitment efforts and exploration of other avenues to bolster staff resources at the border,” a spokesperson for the OPM was quoted as saying in reports. 

Volunteers needed to help manage surge of minors at the border

Acting director OPM, Kathleen McGettigan, also said the agency is working with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to support President Joe Biden’s “urgent efforts” to provide care for the thousands of unaccompanied migrant children who have crossed into the country through the border. 

McGettigan confirmed that the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) — which is within HHS — needs federal government civilian employees for deployment of up to 120 days to support ORR at facilities for unaccompanied children. 

Reports said the facilities in need include those areas along the southwest segment of the US border like Dallas, Fort Bliss and San Antonio in Texas, as well as in San Diego California. 

Locations will then be extended to other geographic areas depending on the need for more personnel support, according McGettigan’s memo. 

“ORR provides a continuum of care for children, including placements in ORR foster care, shelter, and residential care providers that provide temporary housing and other services to unaccompanied children in ORR custody,” the OPM acting director said.

“ORR and its care providers work to ensure that children are released timely and safely from ORR custody to parents, other family members, or other adults … who can care for the child’s physical and mental well-being,” she added.

Republicans hit Biden admin for volunteer call

Following the news of the Biden administration calling for volunteers to help deal with the border crisis, Republicans hit the Democratic leadership for lack of transparency on the issue — and even denying there’s crisis at the border in its early stages.

“Biden White House to the public: ‘Border crisis? There’s no crisis!” Rep. Jody Hice (Georgia) tweeted in response to the OPM memo to federal agencies.

“Biden White House to federal employees: ‘Please volunteer to help with the border crisis.’ You cannot sweep the #BidenBorderCrisis under the rug!” he added.

Senator Ted Cruz also called out the Democratic administration’s lack of transparency for not allowing the media into border facilities.

“The Biden Administration says it’s a COVID risk for any member of the media to see the disaster that is unfolding. That’s an outrage and it’s unacceptable,” Cruz, who has inspected a facility at Donna, Texas last Friday said.

“They’re asking for volunteers now to help contain the border crisis. Oh, wait, it’s not a crisis, is it?” another user wrote.

Meanwhile, as former President Donald Trump sounded extremely worried about the spiraling border crisis and his top aides saying he may schedule a visit to the border soon, President Biden said he “doesn’t care” what his predecessor does.

A Reporter asked Biden: “Former President Trump said he’s been asked by some Border Patrol agents to go to the border…”

To which Biden responded: “I don’t care what the other guy does.”

DHS already sought for volunteers early in March

Earlier, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials have already requested volunteers to help manage  — what he now describes as an “overwhelming” number of migrants seeking to enter the US — and connect them with family members in the country.

“I activated the Volunteer Force to support Customs and Border Protection (CBP) as they face a surge in migration along the Southwest Border,” DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said earlier this month.

Encounters at the southern border have averaged about 5,000 individuals per day throughout March, representing a 50% increase over February  figures if recent numbers hold for the entire month.

President Trump has repeatedly blasted the Biden administration saying recently that the crisis occurred despite the new Democratic leadership being handed ‘the most secure border in history’ from his administration.

“All they had to do was keep this smooth-running system on autopilot. Instead, in the span of just a few weeks, the Biden Administration has turned a national triumph into a national disaster. They are in way over their heads and taking on water fast,” Trump said in a statement Sunday.

Steeve Strange

Steeve is the CEO & Co-Founder of The Scoop.
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