The Mexican troop to be deployed to the Guatemala border are going to naval support on the Pacific Ocean, endurance support for long-range reconnaissance in the Petén Jungle of northeastern Guatemala. They'll need Guatemala's intelligence on who's moving where, when. They'll need a willingness to use non-lethal force such as tear gas, as the Americas did in January at the Tijuana, … [Read more...] about Analysis: Why The Mexican Military’s Mission to the Guatemala-Mexico Border May Not Work Well
Securing U.S. Borders
How Central American Migrants Pay for Kids to Get Over the Border; An Interview on the Front Line
Along with hundreds of thousands of Central American economic migrants exploiting a border-crossing loophole for children came unverified stories, rumors really, that some of the children didn't belong to the adults claiming them, that they were being "recycled," or even kidnapped for the crossing. Here's what's really going on. By Todd Bensman originally published by the Center … [Read more...] about How Central American Migrants Pay for Kids to Get Over the Border; An Interview on the Front Line
Why the Case of Jordanian-Mexican Smuggler Who Transported Yemenis over the Texas Border Matters
Federal prosecutors and law enforcement leaders held a press conference in San Antonio to announce a plea deal with a human smuggler who transported Yemenis over the Texas border, reportedly some with terrorism ties. I thought that what these leaders had to say more generally about the terror infiltration threat at the border was more significant than the plea deal, so I opened the spigot and … [Read more...] about Why the Case of Jordanian-Mexican Smuggler Who Transported Yemenis over the Texas Border Matters
Idiot Lights Blinking: Vetting Failures Still Favor Lying Terrorist Migrants
By Todd Bensman as published by the Center for Immigration Studies on April 30, 2019 New reports keep piling up that asylum seekers and refugees from terrorism-spawning countries have slipped through the U.S. vetting systems despite records of Islamic terrorism. Like episodic idiot-lights on the car dashboard that briefly blink on and then disappear for a while, news reports slowly raise … [Read more...] about Idiot Lights Blinking: Vetting Failures Still Favor Lying Terrorist Migrants
Why Cutting Aid to Central America Is Right and Good
Contrary to an oft-heard liberal plaint about President Trump's plans to cut aid to Central America, foreign aid amounts to bribe money, which the U.S. government has always paid to purchase friendship and help when it wants it. The quaint narrative about how U.S. foreign aid puts down El Salvadoran gang-bangers runs smack into this reality about the world and is, in its way, almost adorable in … [Read more...] about Why Cutting Aid to Central America Is Right and Good
ISIS Commander Arrested in Hungary Held Refugee Passport Enabling Unrestricted Air Travel
Budapest, Hungary Parliament Building, Photo by Todd Bensman The arrest of Hassan also raises the question of whether Greece, as a key refugee transit country, is properly vetting higher risk migrants for potential ties to ISIS before granting refugee status and conferring its benefits. The United States has reportedly been assisting Greece, to some extent, in vetting incoming migrants … [Read more...] about ISIS Commander Arrested in Hungary Held Refugee Passport Enabling Unrestricted Air Travel
Reporting from Panama and Costa Rica: Evidence that Central American Countries Help Middle Easterners and Terrorist Suspects Illegally Enter The United States
In December 2018, the Center for Immigration Studies dispatched Senior National Security Fellow Todd Bensman to Panama and Costa Rica to investigate President Donald Trump’s widely ridiculed assertions that suspected terrorists had been apprehended among Middle East migrants through Latin America. Hint: It was all true. Video reports, photos, and writings from the trip can be found … [Read more...] about Reporting from Panama and Costa Rica: Evidence that Central American Countries Help Middle Easterners and Terrorist Suspects Illegally Enter The United States
Yemenis Smuggled over Texas Border Wearing Hard-Hats and Reflective Vests
The latest on an eight-count alien-smuggling indictment charging that a Jordanian with dual Mexican citizenship illegally transported at least seven Yemenis over the southern border in 2017 — near the same Piedras Negras (Mexico)-Eagle Pass (Texas) border-crossing that members of the last Central American migrant caravan were hoping to reach before Mexico detained them. By Todd Bensman on … [Read more...] about Yemenis Smuggled over Texas Border Wearing Hard-Hats and Reflective Vests
Can and Should Mexican Cartels be Designated as Terrorist Organizations?
By Todd Bensman as published at Center for Immigration Studies on February 26, 2019 Calling for Mexico's drug-trafficking cartels to be designated as foreign terrorist organizations has long earned easy gold stars for the GOP side of the ledger, with really no possible downside. After all, who is not repelled by organizations that behead victims, run houses of torture, co-opt … [Read more...] about Can and Should Mexican Cartels be Designated as Terrorist Organizations?
Two Senators Ask What Became of Obama-Era Program to Counter Terrorist Infiltration at Southern Border
former DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson feared "special interest alien" migration over the southern border to such an extent that he ordered a major interdiction program in June 2016 By Todd Bensman as published by the Center for Immigration Studies on February 25, 2019 Last August, the Center for Immigration Studies exclusively published a three-page memorandum by former DHS … [Read more...] about Two Senators Ask What Became of Obama-Era Program to Counter Terrorist Infiltration at Southern Border