Border lawmakers grill DHS Secretary Noem, suggest security spending options

McALLEN, Texas (Border Report) - Four bipartisan lawmakers from the Southwest borderline questioned Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem Tuesday connected borderline spending, and suggested ways her bureau tin amended borderline security.

Democratic Reps. Henry Cuellar and Veronica Escobar, and Republican Reps. Tony Gonzales, each of Texas, and Juan Ciscomani, of Arizona, took turns questioning, and astatine times grilling Noem, during the astir 3-hour-long proceeding Tuesday by the House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee successful Washington, D.C.

Cuellar told Noem that lone one-third of cameras connected the borderline operated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection are moving "Two-thirds are not working. That's not right," helium said.

A mobile video surveillance system, commonly called a "scope" motortruck is seen March 7, 2024, connected the borderline successful Hidalgo, Texas. (Sandra Sanchez/Border Report File Photo)

And "dead zones is simply a existent problem. There are areas they can’t adjacent speech oregon communicate," helium said.

Cuellar said contempt billions of dollars spent connected borderline technology, "there are definite areas and unsafe areas that Border Patrol don't person exertion that's working."

Noem went earlier lawmakers to advocator for implicit $175 cardinal successful backing for DHS successful Fiscal Year 2026, which starts Oct. 1. This includes increases successful funds to physique much miles of borderline barrier, accrued borderline technology, much officers, and collaboration with section instrumentality enforcement astatine the border.

The U.S. Homeland Security Department office successful northwest Washington is pictured connected Feb. 25, 2015. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)

The Trump medication is requesting a reconciliation bill, which is simply a fast-track process that would let transition successful the Senate by a elemental majority, alternatively of 60 votes.

"Reconciliation would empower the DHS to instrumentality the president's wide removal run and unafraid the border," Noem said successful her written statement.

She told the committee that nether President Donald Trump's second-term daily borderline encounters successful March were down 93% by Border Patrol agents. She said that equates to nether 200 migrants encountered by agents per day, down from implicit 15,000 per time astatine times during the Biden administration.

In March, she said trafficking of fentanyl dropped by 54% from March 2024 astatine the border.

But she said successful bid to proceed to transportation retired the Trump administration's goals, Congress needs to money borderline information missions successful Fiscal 2026. She specifically stressed the request for accrued backing of the U.S. Coast Guard - which is nether DHS.

She says maritime cause and quality trafficking encounters person drastically accrued recently.

Members of the Coast Guard defender seized cocaine successful Los Angeles connected Aug. 29, 2019. Maritime cause seizures are increasing, arsenic good arsenic maritime quality trafficking, DHS says. (AP File Photo/Chris Carlson, file)

"The Coast Guard has already surpassed its funds for Fiscal Year 2025 with the fig of cause interdiction coastal encounters and hunt and rescue and amerciable interdictions," Noem said.

In March, she said the U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers seized astir 232,000 pounds of fentanyl and different amerciable drugs.

Cuellar told Noem helium believes improvements request to beryllium made connected what helium calls the borderline "basics." The South Texas lawmaker from Laredo told her that stream roads - which would travel on the trajectory of the Rio Grande, not tally parallel to it - request to beryllium made to let Border Patrol agents amended entree to those trying to illegally transverse into the country.

He besides said that carrizo cane plants request to beryllium chopped down connected the riverbanks for agents to spot those who are crossing.

And helium urges DHS to escaped the Rio Grande of islands that are successful the mediate of the river, which helium says "the atrocious guys volition travel successful and usage those islands to travel over."

He besides told Noem to prosecute caller Border Patrol agents, and helium said "the polygraph exam is the biggest occupation to hiring BP agents."

He said successful Fiscal Year 2025, Congress approved a Border Patrol unit of 22,000, but presently determination are lone 19,327 agents.

Escobar questioned DHS's usage of funds and said she worries the bureau does not travel the Constitution due to the fact that of caller reports of U.S. children being deported.

Noem defended the removals, saying the children were portion of families with non-citizens who chose to enactment together.

Ciscomani, said determination person been 65,000 "gottaways" truthful acold successful Fiscal Year 2025 and asked however champion to halt radical from illegally crossing into the United States.

Noem replied the maritime borders request to beryllium strengthened and erstwhile again pushed the request for accrued backing for the Coast Guard.

"We person seen numbers pushed heavy toward the maritime borders. The Coast Guard is seeing overmuch much trafficking and cartel," she said. "The Coast Guard has been neglected for many, galore years."

She added that surveillance instrumentality including added cameras, satellites, and Aerostats, arsenic good arsenic scanners astatine ports of introduction are priorities for usage with caller funds.

And she said the medication volition proceed to enactment with Mexican officials to deter radical from attempting to transverse into the United States. She said an estimated 600,000 immigrants are thought to person been deterred from the borderline by Mexican officers.

Gonzales asked if Texas would beryllium reimbursed for the $11 cardinal it has spent connected borderline information done Operation Lone Star.

Noem complimented Texas, arsenic good arsenic different states that person sent National Guard to the borderline "and stepped up and filled the gap" but said determination person not been immoderate decisions connected whether states volition beryllium reimbursed.

Sandra Sanchez tin beryllium reached astatine SSanchez@BorderReport.com.