Amid the ongoing struggle in Texas against the influx of illegal immigrants, Missouri has emerged as a key player in the legal arena, spearheading lawsuits aimed at compelling the Biden administration to secure the border.
Attorney General Andrew Bailey leads the charge and is pushing for action on multiple fronts, including the enforcement of Congress' directive to utilize allocated funds for continuing the construction of the border wall initiated by former President Donald Trump.
“When you look at the way the Biden administration has perverted immigration law – to open up the parole process and create lawful pathways for illegal criminal aliens – that’s like hanging an ‘OPEN’ sign at the southern border and inviting people to come here, because it makes it look like our laws don’t matter,” Bailey told Heartlander News.
“And then, when the president and the secretary refuse to finish building Trump’s border wall as they were commanded to do by Congress, again, that also undermines the rule of law.”
“But it goes deeper, because we’re reaching a point of constitutional crisis. Congress has the power of the purse, and they exercise that power by commanding Secretary [Alejandro] Mayorkas to finish building Trump’s border wall. That power of the purse ceases to mean anything if the secretary and the president can just ignore it. And that’s why this lawsuit is so important.”
Bailey’s office did not respond to a request from comment for Legal Newsline.
One lawsuit, in collaboration with Texas, seeks to enforce Congress' $2 billion appropriation for the border wall, challenging the Biden administration's failure to comply with legislative mandates. Bailey anticipates that he'll secure a preliminary injunction against the administration at the district court level in the near future.
Another legal battle confronts the current administration's controversial transformation of an immigration parole program into a group visa initiative and argues that such actions exceed congressional authorization.
A third lawsuit targets a Department of Homeland Security proposal that allows individuals abroad to enter the U.S. through an app-based sponsorship process, bypassing traditional visa vetting procedures.
Bailey contends that the Biden administration's policies not only fail to address border security but actively encourage illegal immigration, likening them to an "open invitation" for individuals to disregard immigration laws.
Bailey was in favor of impeaching Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
In a January hearing on the impeachment, Bailey said that Mayorkas had violated his oath of office.
“The fact of the matter is that every state is a border state,” Bailey said at the hearing. “Every state and its citizens are forced to bear the brunt of Secretary Mayorkas’ ineptitude. My call to Congress today is simple: remove that burden from the shoulders of everyday Americans and put it back where it belongs – on the shoulders of those sworn to protect us. The states should not need to take steps to do the federal government’s job for them.”
He noted the expenditures of $12.4 billion the federal government had set aside for illegal immigrants, and the effects of the fentanyl crisis in the state.
On Feb. 13 the U.S. House narrowly passed two articles of impeachment agasint Mayorkas on a 214-213 vote.
With the vote, Mayorkas became only the second cabinet member impeached in the country’s history.
Last year, Bailey, alongside a coalition of 27 states, demanded urgent action from the Biden administration to rectify the catch-and-release loophole in immigration policies, citing national security concerns heightened by recent terror incidents.
The coalition submitted a Petition for Rulemaking to Mayorkas, emphasizing the need to close the loophole exploited by DHS for mass releases at the Southwest border and urging DHS to amend regulations to prohibit unlawful releases, proposing specific amendments to address the issue and threatening judicial review if their demands are not met.
“The situation at the southern border has spun out of control, all thanks to Joe Biden and his inept administration,” Bailey said in a press release.
“His refusal to secure the border has resulted in an unprecedented flood of unvetted migrants into the interior of our nation. We have no idea who Joe Biden has allowed into our communities. After what happened in Israel over the weekend, it is more vital than ever that we secure our border and keep Americans safe.”
Highlighting the administration's failure to secure the border, Bailey emphasized the risk posed by unvetted migrants entering the country in the aftermath of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
Bailey, alongside another 18-state coalition, filed a lawsuit against the Biden Administration over its proposed "Circumvention of Lawful Pathways" rule, which they argue exacerbates the ongoing crisis of illegal immigration at the southern border.
Characterizing the situation as a failure of Biden's constitutional duties, Bailey asserted that legal action is necessary to compel the administration to fulfill its responsibilities.
The coalition contends that the new rule, while purportedly aimed at regulating immigration post-CDC's Title 42, actually legitimizes illegal border crossings as "lawful pathways," further weakening border security.
They argue that this move would allow a surge of immigrants to enter the country, burdening states with the costs of their presence and granting them unauthorized benefits.