In an interview, P.J. Lechleitner, acting director of immigration and customs enforcement, stated that President Joe Biden should have taken immediate action to strengthen border security in order to curb the influx of migrants into the United States.
Lechleitner, who took over as acting director in July 2023 and is getting ready to step down this week before the next administration appoints a replacement, told NBC News on Wednesday that his agency had to provide personnel to assist Customs and Border Protection due to the volume of incoming migrants, which left ICE unable to effectively carry out its own primary mission. He said that he was not the only one who thought Biden ought to have acted more quickly.
“I believe that the DHS career people would have appreciated that,” he said. And to be honest, I’m not sure if any of us at DHS would not have desired that sooner.
Lechleitner was alluding to the executive move that Biden took in June of last year to limit asylum claims by those who entered the country illegally.The number of unlawful border crossings per month fell to 54,000 by September, the lowest since Biden entered office. The decline aligned the figures with Trump’s pre-pandemic levels from the autumn of 2019. Only 46,000 migrants crossed the border illegally in November, and the numbers have been declining each since.
The shift happened so quickly that, unlike during the Biden administration, Texas Governor Greg Abbott was no longer able to locate immigrants to load onto buses and send to places like New York and Chicago.
The administration’s stance does not always align with Lechleitner’s. A request for comment was not immediately answered by the White House.
When asked if he had any regrets, Biden did not bring up the southern border in an interview with USA Today that was published this week. Lechleitner claims he is not shocked that Biden has not expressed contrition for the inaction at the border.
“I think we could have done more, so it’s unfortunate,” he remarked.
We could have allocated more resources to it, either at CBP, for the border itself, and with ICE, he continued when pressed for details. In reference to the arrests of undocumented individuals outside of ICE custody, he stated, “And we could have gone and tried to get more of these individuals in the nondetained docket.”
We had the opportunity to remove and detain more individuals. Additionally, I believe we could use more assistance and resources. He claimed that we had the opportunity to achieve it throughout the previous four years.
Having worked for the Department of Homeland Security since its founding in 2003, Lechleitner has held positions in both Democratic and Republican administrations. Lechleitner said he had frequently requested additional funding for an agency that he claimed was chronically underfunded since taking over as interim ICE head last year.
A little over 47,000 aliens have been detained and deported by ICE in fiscal year 2024. According to Lechleitner, ICE was unable to deport any more people with the same resources. He said, “We’re burning hot.” We are using all of our resources. We’ll need more funding and resources to expand at this stage, and with more funding and resources, we can expand removal operations and incarceration.
In addition, Lechleitner expressed his wish that the Biden administration had permitted his agency to be more outspoken and open about its work and concerns, and that it had been more open and honest with the American public regarding immigration matters, partly because greater communication could have prevented misinformation.
He stated, “They should have given us more opportunity to explain what we’re doing and the hard work that CBP and ICE are doing.” Let’s have a conversation. Let’s dispel the mystery. Because it will be more problematic if people don’t, they will simply make up stories about what’s happening.
Lechleitner claims that leaders stopped his team from doing the originally planned monthly news conferences.
We were only permitted to do so much, he added, but he wasn’t sure why they stopped.
Lechleitner also noted that cities that followed sanctuary policies—which forbid them from informing ICE when undocumented individuals are being released from jail—were another source of annoyance.
“It really irritates me when our state and local partners refuse to work with us on some of these immigration issues,” he said. Come on, guy, these are hazards to national security and public safety. And why? Why are we unable to work together and just take this action to safeguard the American people?
Lechleitner expressed his well wishes for the next administration but warned that it would be costly and challenging if it is serious about making the arrest of migrants with criminal histories a top priority.
The American people have spoken, and perhaps, with luck, we will receive a lot more assistance to enable the workforce to perform their jobs in a more meaningful manner. However, we require resources. Provide us with other resources. We can accomplish more if you provide us with additional staff and assistance.