Nashville Standard

This week, Republican leaders from the House Committee on Homeland Security reached out to the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Kristi Noem, to demand information about the Biden-Harris administration's implementation of mass parole for inadmissible aliens. The request comes after several previous attempts to secure similar information, some of which resulted in subpoenas.

The letter was sent by Committee Chairman Mark E. Green, MD (R-TN), along with Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Accountability Chairman Josh Brecheen (R-OK), and Subcommittee on Border Security and Enforcement Chairman Michael Guest (R-MS). They asked for documents detailing the immigration status and numbers of inadmissible aliens released through parole programs under the previous administration, including the Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan, and Venezuelan parole program (CHNV), as well as the use of the CBP One app.

In addition, the request included a list of non-profit organizations that applied to sponsor inadmissible aliens under the CHNV program. The full text of the letter is available, with key quotes highlighted about the administration's efforts. The Chairmen claimed, “The Biden-Harris administration abused its limited authority to grant parole to inadmissible aliens en masse…” and expressed concerns about transparency and fiscal accountability.

The Trump administration previously ended the CHNV program and revised the CBP One app to focus on self-deportation efforts. However, the Biden-Harris administration allowed the entry of an estimated 1.5 million inadmissible aliens through these programs over the past four years. Last year, DHS temporarily halted travel authorizations for CHNV parolees due to suspected fraud. An internal report reviewed by Fox News revealed instances of repeated use of identifiers such as social security numbers and addresses in applications, including some linked to deceased individuals.

Furthermore, a report by the Washington Examiner in August 2023 highlighted misuse of the CBP One app by Mexican cartels, who were utilizing VPNs to obscure the locations of aliens using the app. Between January and August 2023, DHS disclosed that 95.8 percent of app-scheduled inadmissible aliens received a "Notice to Appear" and were allowed entry on parole.

In light of these issues, Chairman Green had previously subpoenaed then-DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for additional information on Afghan evacuees following the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. The request remains part of ongoing efforts by the Committee to obtain crucial data from the DHS.