# data[].attributes.body
From Raices Texas:
Sometimes the scale and statistics around MPP can be too much to truly grasp and they obscure the fact that behind each one of these numbers is one of us: a human being. We want you to briefly meet just a few people caught up in this monstrous policy. They share their stories of dating in a refugee camp, of resilience, of scary spiders, of love, of parenting, of hope."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
"It's difficult here, especially if you have kids. Our tent is near the river so you constantly have to keep an eye on the kids. It's also really hot and my three-year-old daughter is just fed up.

I carried her, walking all the way from Honduras. All I know is we walked a lot. I had a backpack on my back and I had her in my arms. I started the journey with little bottles of electrolytes that I carried in the backpack. If it wouldn't have been for those little bottles of hydration, I don't think my baby would have made it here alive.

I thought I'd spend Christmas 2019 in the U.S, but here we are. My baby's had a birthday here, I had a birthday here. I have sponsors in the U.S. waiting for us.

I live off of $150USD a month, for me and my baby. I find it extremely hard, especially when my baby is sick. I don't know how I'm going to make it.

My dream and my goals, they matter to God. No one else cares."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
"It's difficult here, especially if you have kids. Our tent is near the river so you constantly have to keep an eye on the kids. It's also really hot and my three-year-old daughter is just fed up. I carried her, walking all the way from Honduras. All I know is we walked a lot.

# data[].attributes.body
One of three countries from which migrants come to seek asylum in the U.S. With the MPP, they were turned away to await their immigration hearing in Mexico.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Desperation grows in Honduras, fueling migration

# data[].attributes.body
One of the three countries from which asylum seekers were sent back to Mexico to await immigration hearing.

# data[].attributes.body
Asylum seekers were sent back to Mexico to wait for an immigration hearing.

# data[].attributes.headline
Trump's obsession with white nationalism, anti-immigration

# data[].attributes.subject
Trump's obsession with white nationalism, anti-immigration

# data[].attributes.body
Trump began his presidency with racist remarks.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
LAS VEGAS - Republican Donald Trump declared his presidential bid Tuesday by accusing Mexico of sending people bringing drugs, criminals and rapists, promising to build a Great Wall on the nation's southern border and vowing to end the president's immigration executive action.

Trump, real estate magnate and reality TV star, painted a picture of an out-of-control border that he said border guards are describing to him. He said the people coming to the U.S. are not just from Mexico "but all over South and Latin America" and "probably from the Middle East."

"When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending the best. They're not sending you, they're sending people that have lots of problems and they're bringing those problems," Trump said in a speech at Trump Tower in New York. "They're bringing drugs, they're bringing crime. They're rapists and some, I assume, are good people, but I speak to border guards and they're telling us what we're getting."

He seemed to also criticize the people responsible for guarding the border, saying the types of people he described are coming because "we have no protection and no competence."

"I would build a Great Wall, and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me, and I'll build them very inexpensively. I will build a great, great wall on our southern border and I will have Mexico pay for that wall, mark my words," said Trump, known for the buildings and facilities bearing his name and for his television show "The Apprentice."

He added that he would immediately end Obama's executive action on immigration that would shield millions of immigrants here illegally from deportation and allow them to work but are stalled in court. Immigrants who would qualify would have to have been here at least five years or arrived in the country as children.

"It appears Mr. Trump is having a difficult time separating fact from fiction. Developing a sound foreign policy with the United States' most important trade partner and neighbor is not a reality TV show," said Arturo Vargas, executive director for the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials. The group's is holding its annual conference this week in Las Vegas where three presidential candidates are expected to address immigration and other issues important to the Latino community.

Immigration has become a key issue of the 2016 presidential campaigns in large part because of the Latino vote, which is considered critical to winning the White House.

While most of the Republican presidential hopefuls have opposed Obama's executive action, a few have been promising immigration reform with at least legal status for those already here. Democrats have pledged a path to citizenship and have supported Obama's programs.

Immigration activists and some Latino groups have dogged candidates to take a stand in support of Obama's executive action and immigration reform. But also key are votes from conservatives who consider the executive action and providing any legal status to people in the country illegally to be "amnesty" and who want far tighter border controls.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Donald Trump Announces Presidential Bid By Trashing Mexico, Mexicans

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
LAS VEGAS - Republican Donald Trump declared his presidential bid Tuesday by accusing Mexico of sending people bringing drugs, criminals and rapists, promising to build a Great Wall on the nation's southern border and vowing to end the president's immigration executive action.

# data[].attributes.headline
Trump takes money away from military budget to build "big, beautiful wall"

# data[].attributes.subject
Trump takes money away from military budget to build "big, beautiful wall"

# data[].attributes.body
The Supreme Court allowed Trump to bypass Congress to move $6 billion from the military to build the wall along border

# data[].attributes.body
Trump's tweet turned into a White House statement and that put Mexico's back to the wall

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - It should have been a good day for Mexico's veteran point man for trade with the rest of North America.

But Jesus Seade had just wrapped up an optimistic speech to a friendly Mexican Senate, aimed at winning ratification for a regional free trade deal, when he was sideswiped.

At 6:30 p.m. (2330 GMT), U.S. President Donald Trump tweeted that Washington would impose a 5% tariff, rapidly ratcheting higher, on all goods coming from Mexico unless the flow of illegal immigrants across the southern U.S. border was stanched.

The message reached Seade, Mexico's deputy foreign minister for North America, just as he arrived from the Senate at the Foreign Ministry to tell reporters about the progress on the United States-Mexico-Canada-Agreement (USMCA) he helped negotiate.

At first, he tried to play down the development, saying "Trump is very active in the use of the tweet," of which only some are "put into action."

Then Seade's demeanor became more serious.

"My colleagues just told me that the tweet mentioned by the last journalist, bad news. It's no longer just a tweet, it's now a White House statement," he said.

Clearly taken aback by the severity and abruptness of the measures, which would take tariffs to 25% by October, Seade swung from advising calm and dialogue to saying a strategy of non-retaliation from President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador would be unacceptable.

Mexico sends about 80 percent of its exports - mostly manufactured goods like cars and televisions - to the United States.

Seade said the most logical response to would be an "eye for an eye" but then warned reciprocal measures would lead to a trade war "and that is the last thing that we want."

A gregarious and immensely experienced negotiator, Seade has invested a lot of time in keeping bilateral relations on an even keel.

He helped create the predecessor to the World Trade Association and used an old connection with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to seal the new USMCA over meals at the Metropolitan Club in Washington.

But even before the tariff threat, there were still hurdles to cross.

Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives, perhaps wary of handing Trump a victory and worried the deal is not still not tough enough on labor law enforcement, have indicated they may not approve it.

But U.S. Vice President Mike Pence said on Thursday he was pushing to get the U.S. Congress to ratify it this summer, after both Canada and Mexico signaled they were ready.

Hours later, nearly 20 months of talks, concessions, and wrangling to seal the replacement for the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) seemed to be slipping away.

"This is difficult ... even more so between two nations trying to seal a wonderful trade deal. The best trade deal in history according to Trump himself and suddenly he throws this in the way," Seade said.

On Friday a delegation led by Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard, which an aide said might include Seade, will travel to Washington to try to defuse the situation before economic disaster strikes.

Mexico imports a great deal of U.S. products, giving it scope for a large-scale retaliation.

"If we consider that Mexico exports over $350 billion to the United States, retaliation to the measures by Mexico would be off the charts," said Kenneth Smith, Mexico's former chief NAFTA negotiator.

Mexico's reaction is not yet clear.

In a letter to Trump, Lopez Obrador said he was not looking for confrontation but also jabbed back, calling the U.S. leader's signature phrase America First "a fallacy."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How Trump's trade tariff tweet put Mexico's back to the wall

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - It should have been a good day for Mexico's veteran point man for trade with the rest of North America. But Jesus Seade had just wrapped up an optimistic speech to a friendly Mexican Senate, aimed at winning ratification for a regional free trade deal, when he was sideswiped.

# data[].attributes.body
Nielsen became the security of U.S. Department of Homeland Security in 2017 after John Kelly left to become White House Chief of Staff.

# data[].attributes.body
‘I’m not sure what we are saying here,’ Nielsen said. ‘As the attorney general knows, people have a legal right to cross the border and try to claim asylum. That’s just the law.’

Trump looked back at Sessions.

‘No,’ Sessions said, ‘we should just shut the border down.’ (Rucker & Leonnig, 2020, 305)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Books of The Times

When you purchase an independently reviewed book through our site, we earn an affiliate commission.

The essence of irony, Henry Fowler wrote in "A Dictionary of Modern English Usage," is that it "postulates a double audience" - one that's in on the joke, and another that isn't. The title of Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig's new book, "A Very Stable Genius," is thus savvy marketing. It's possible to imagine both Donald J. Trump's detractors and his admirers eagerly grasping a copy.

The admirers will not make it past the table of contents. Among the chapter titles: "Unhinged," "Shocking the Conscience," "Paranoia and Pandemonium" and "Scare-a-Thon." This verbiage makes Rucker and Leonnig's book sound like one more enraged polemic. It isn't. They're meticulous journalists, and this taut and terrifying book is among the most closely observed accounts of Donald J. Trump's shambolic tenure in office to date.

Rucker is The Washington Post's White House bureau chief; Leonnig is a national investigative reporter for the newspaper. Both have won Pulitzer Prizes. Their newspaper's ominous, love-it-or-hate-it motto is "Democracy Dies in Darkness." "A Very Stable Genius" flicks the lights on from its first pages.

Rucker and Leonnig have composed their book, they write, out of a desire to step out of the churning news cycle and "assess the reverberations" of Trump's presidency. The result is a chronological account of the past three years in Washington, based on interviews with more than 200 sources.

It reads like a horror story, an almost comic immorality tale. It's as if the president, as patient zero, had bitten an aide and slowly, bite by bite, an entire nation had lost its wits and its compass.

The result of Rucker and Leonnig's hard work is a book that runs low to the ground; it only rarely pauses for sweeping, drone-level vistas and injections of historical perspective. This is not Garry Wills or Joan Didion. They do break news, some large and some small.

An example of large news: They report that in the spring of 2017, Trump implored Rex Tillerson, then secretary of state, to help him jettison the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. "It's just so unfair that American companies aren't allowed to pay bribes to get business overseas," Trump whines to a group of aides. Nearly every line from Trump, in "A Very Stable Genius," is this venal.

Another example: While visiting Pearl Harbor, according to John F. Kelly, Trump's former chief of staff, Trump seemed to have no idea what had actually happened there. Throughout he is misinformed and confused while at the same time utterly certain of himself.

An example of small but nonetheless piquant news: Administration lawyers came up with a nickname for Matthew Whitaker, the former acting attorney general. They called him Mongo, after the illiterate galoot played by Alex Karras in the Mel Brooks movie "Blazing Saddles."

Rucker and Leonnig are adept at scene-setting, at subtly thickening the historical record. More than a few of these scenes feature Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, known to nearly all in the White House as "the kids." They're viewed as in over their heads and possessed of unfailingly defective judgment.

Image

Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig Credit... Melina Mara/The Washington Post

There's a brutal scene early on, during the initial staffing of Trump's White House, concerning Michael Flynn, the president's first national security adviser. Despite warnings about Flynn - the authors describe his "Islamophobic rhetoric, coziness with Russia and other foreign adversaries and a reliance on flimsy facts and dubious assertions" - Trump's team made it clear he could have any job he wanted in the administration.

The authors write: "'Oh, General Flynn, how loyal you've been to my father,' Ivanka said in her distinctive breathy voice, adding something to the effect of 'What do you want to do?'"

Before Trump had met with NATO allies, he kept glancing at Reince Priebus and pleading in front of others, in fanboy tones, "When can I meet with Putin? Can I meet with him before the inaugural ceremony?"

The authors build several stirring scenes around Tillerson's experiences as secretary of state, and the disturbing behavior he witnessed. They provide the fullest picture to date of a now notorious July 2017 meeting in "the Tank" of the Pentagon during which military leaders and Trump's national security team, alarmed by "gaping holes in the president's knowledge of history and the alliances forged in the wake of World War II," tried to give him a gentle lesson on American power.

The meeting ended after Trump exploded, saying, among other things, "You're all losers, you don't know how to win anymore," and "You're a bunch of dopes and babies."

At a later meeting in the White House Situation Room, Trump began speaking, not for the first time, about his desire to make a profit from the deployment of American soldiers. Tillerson had finally had enough. The authors describe the moment. The secretary of state stood, facing away from the president and toward officers and aides in the room.

"I've never put on a uniform, but I know this," the authors quote Tillerson saying. "Every person who has put on a uniform, the people in this room, they don't do it to make a buck. They did it for their country, to protect us. I want everyone to be clear about how much we as a country value their service."

Trump grew red in the face, but saved his fire for later. The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff later called Tillerson, his voice unsteady with emotion, to thank him. There aren't a lot of moments in "A Very Stable Genius" in which people do the right instead of the expedient thing. Some of these scenes may make the reader unsteady with emotion as well.

There's a lot more here, amid the peeling wallpaper of the American experiment. Trump considered awarding himself the Medal of Freedom. He informed the Indian prime minister Narendra Modi, wrongly: "It's not like you've got China on your border." Photographs emerged of Colbie Holderness, one of the former White House staff secretary Rob Porter's ex-wives, with a black eye. She said Porter gave it to her. Trump had another explanation. The authors write: "Maybe, Trump said, Holderness purposefully ran into a refrigerator to give herself bruises and try to get money out of Porter?"

There are grainy details of a physical altercation between Kelly and Corey Lewandowski. There is the belittling, by nearly everyone, of the acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney ("He'll take whatever I offer him"; "Mick just wants to be liked."). There is commentary about Robert Mueller's failure to press the president for a face-to-face interview during his investigation. There are descriptions of Mike Pence as "a wax museum guy," able to blithely absorb any amount of insanity without comment.

In his memoir "A Good Life: Newspapering and Other Adventures," the Washington Post editor Ben Bradlee wrote that Richard Nixon's press secretary, Ron Ziegler, was "a small-bore man, over his head, and riding a bad horse."

These words apply, one thinks while reading Rucker and Leonnig's more than competent book, to nearly every adviser and staffer now in Trump's orbit. The authors write: "The ineptitude came from the very top."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
A Meticulous Account of Trump's Tenure Reads Like a Comic Horror Story (Published 2020)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Books of The Times When you purchase an independently reviewed book through our site, we earn an affiliate commission. The essence of irony, Henry Fowler wrote in "A Dictionary of Modern English Usage," is that it "postulates a double audience" - one that's in on the joke, and another that isn't.

# data[].attributes.body
Trump warned Mexico with tariffs of up to 25 percent if they didn't stop immigrants from coming into the United States

# data[].attributes.location_name
U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Nebraska Avenue Northwest, D.C., DC, USA

# data[].attributes.headline
U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Nebraska Avenue Northwest, D.C., DC, USA

# data[].attributes.subject
U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Nebraska Avenue Northwest, D.C., DC, USA

# data[].attributes.body
Migrant Protection Protocols, or the "Remain in Mexico" program began in 2019.

# data[].attributes.wish_content.attachment_props.text
For far too long, our terrible laws and bad judicial rulings have forced the United States to allow illegal aliens to live and work in our country while years-long immigration proceedings roll on. That ends today. #MPP

# data[].attributes.wish_content.attachment_props.original_text
For far too long, our terrible laws and bad judicial rulings have forced the United States to allow illegal aliens to live and work in our country while years-long immigration proceedings roll on. That ends today. #MPP

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.embed_code
For far too long, our terrible laws and bad judicial rulings have forced the United States to allow illegal aliens to live and work in our country while years-long immigration proceedings roll on. That ends today. #MPP
— Secretary Kirstjen M. Nielsen (@SecNielsen) December 21, 2018

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props_source.data.text
For far too long, our terrible laws and bad judicial rulings have forced the United States to allow illegal aliens to live and work in our country while years-long immigration proceedings roll on. That ends today. #MPP

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.original_text
For far too long, our terrible laws and bad judicial rulings have forced the United States to allow illegal aliens to live and work in our country while years-long immigration proceedings roll on. That ends today. #MPP

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.text
For far too long, our terrible laws and bad judicial rulings have forced the United States to allow illegal aliens to live and work in our country while years-long immigration proceedings roll on. That ends today. #MPP

# data[].attributes.body
A law was passed to give asylum seekers education, work and healthcare.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Mexico, through international and national law, has instituted a legal framework for the protection of refugees. This framework informs the scope of protection available to an increasing number of migrants arriving in Mexico.
International and Regional Instruments
Mexico signed the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol in 2000. In addition, Mexico is party to the 1984 Cartagena Declaration on Refugees. The 1984 declaration goes beyond the definition of "refugee" that appears in the 1951 Geneva Convention. Per the 1951 Geneva Convention a refugee is an individual who,

[O]wing to well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country.

The Cartagena Declaration expands the definition of refugee to include:

persons who have fled their countries because their lives, safety, or freedom have been threatened by generalized violence, foreign aggression, internal conflicts, massive violation of human rights or other circumstances which have seriously disturbed public order. [Emphasis added.]

In 1994, the San Jose Declaration reiterated the importance of the Cartagena Declaration, and broadened its scope to extend protection to the internally displaced.
Law on Refugees, Complementary Protection, and Political Asylum
Mexico's law concerning refugees and asylum was not drafted until 2009. It was passed by Mexico's senate and the legislature's lower chamber in 2010, and signed into law on December 26, 2011.

Mexico's law, written with technical support from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), incorporates the broader definition of "refugee" found in the Cartagena Declaration. Thus, Mexico's Law on Refugees, Complementary Protection, and Political Asylum grants protection for people whose lives have been threatened by generalized violence but would not be considered refugees under the 1951 Convention. It also considers gender as grounds for persecution, incorporates the principle of non-refoulement, and includes provisions regarding non-discrimination.

Moreover, if an individual does not qualify for refugee status under this extended definition, the Ministry of the Interior may grant complementary protection, which halts the return of an individual to a territory of another county where his or her life would be in danger of being subjected to torture or other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment.
Procedure to be Recognized as a Refugee in Mexico
Mexico's Commission for Refugee Assistance (COMAR), under the Ministry of Interior, is responsible for processing claims for refugee status alongside Mexico's National Institute for Migration (INM). Below is a description of the procedure:

All foreigners in national territory have the right to apply for refugee status, which must be submitted to COMAR or the National Institute for Migration, within in 30 days after entering national territory.

The procedure lasts 45 business days, a period in which confidentiality, non-discrimination, and non-refoulment to the country of origin or habitual residence where their life, security, or freedom is threatened are guaranteed.

Likewise, the right to a hearing is guaranteed and at the end of said period, COMAR will issue a reasoned and motivated resolution regarding the recognition or not of refugee status as well as the granting of complementary protection.

As part of the procedure, the applicant must fill, in his/her handwriting in front of an authority, an information form in which he/she must provide personal data and the reasons for which he/she emigrated from his country of origin or habitual residence. Applicants for recognition of refugee status have the right to legal representation.

When interviewed, the applicant must narrate the events that led to his/her departure from his/her country of origin or habitual residence, as well as provide evidence to support his/her statements. If required, assistance is provided by a translator or interpreter of his/her native language or understanding. Throughout the process for recognition of refugee status, respect for human rights of the applicants and refugees is guaranteed. Upon being granted the recognition of refugee status by COMAR, the right to access permanent residence is obtained.

It should be noted that, according to Mexico's law, any immigration proceedings initiated due to illegal entry are suspended until a final decision regarding an individual's refugee status is submitted.
Recent Numbers
Statistics from COMAR, as seen in Figure 1, show that the number of people seeking refugee status in Mexico has been increasing over the past couple of years.

Figure 1. Asylum Applications in Mexico: 2017

Source: Mexico's Commission for Refugee Assistance

More specifically, the number of asylum applications coming from the Northern Triangle countries (Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador) has seen an increase. These three countries provide the majority of applications received by COMAR. Cuba and Venezuela have also been significant contributors.

Figure 2. Northern Triangle Asylum Applications in Mexico

Source: Mexico's Commission for Refugee Assistance

As application numbers increase, Mexico has also granted international protection (asylum and complementary protection as defined in Article 13 and Article 28 of Mexico's Law on Refugees, Complementary Protection, and Political Asylum) at an increasing rate, to individuals who complete the application process. It should be noted that many abandon the application process, and are not included in the data shown in Figure 3.

Figure 3. International Protection Provision Rates in Mexico

Source: Mexico's Commission for Refugee Assistance

Given the increase in asylum applications, COMAR has experienced a backlog. Once resolved, the applications that are currently still in the review process could impact the international protection provision rates.
Conclusion
It remains to be seen if the number of applications received by COMAR will continue to rise and if the rate of recognition will follow the upward trend seen over the past couple of years.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Mexico, through international and national law, has instituted a legal framework for the protection of refugees. This framework informs the scope of protection available to an increasing number of migrants arriving in Mexico. International and Regional Instruments Mexico signed the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol in 2000.

# data[].attributes.body
The first person was returned through MPP in January 2019 from San Diego to Tijuana.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Aaron M. Heitke
Chief Patrol Agent

The San Diego Sector encompasses 56,831 square miles including 931 miles of coastal border from the California border with Mexico north to Oregon. San Diego Sector's primary operational area of responsibility consists of 7,000 square miles including 60 linear miles of international boundary with Mexico and 114 coastal border miles along the Pacific Ocean. The San Diego Sector encompasses coastal beaches and expansive mesas that lead to coastal and inland mountains, rugged canyons, and high desert. Directly south of San Diego lie the Mexican cities of Tijuana and Tecate, Baja California, which have a combined population of more than four and a half million people.

During the seventies, illegal alien traffic steadily increased, rising to more than 100,000 in 1973 and more than 250,000 by 1976. In 1986, the sector recorded its highest number of apprehensions in a single year-more than 628,000.

Although the smallest Border Patrol sector geographically, San Diego Sector was the busiest sector for illegal entries, accounting for more than 40 percent of nationwide apprehensions in the early nineties. For decades, this area was the preferred corridor for illegal entries due to the highly populated neighborhoods north and south of the border. The region gained national attention with the inception of Operation Gatekeeper on October 1, 1994, an initiative that aimed to restore integrity and safety at the Nation's busiest border. The former Immigration and Naturalization Service, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of California, and the Executive Office for Immigration Review committed unprecedented resources and implemented innovative strategies to reverse decades of neglect along the San Diego border.

As a result, illegal entries were reduced by approximately 75 percent over the next few years to a more manageable level in the late 1990s. San Diego Sector was then able to concentrate on other areas, such as establishing the Border Safety Initiative (BSI). In 1998, the BSI was initiated, a multi-faceted border safety campaign designed to reduce injuries and prevent fatalities along the border.

Over the course of the last four decades, San Diego Sector has created a variety of specialty units that further the mission of the U.S. Border Patrol.

1979-Horse Patrol

1984-REACT (now named San Diego Sector Border Patrol Tactical Unit -BORTAC)

1992-Marine Interdiction Unit (now led by CBP's Office of Air & Marine)

1998-BORSTAR (Border Patrol Search, Trauma and Rescue team)

2003-Air Mobile Unit (recently merged into Mobile Response Team)

2005-Smuggling Interdiction Group (SIG)- consolidated a variety of special-purpose enforcement units in the areas of smuggling interdiction, investigation, and intelligence

The nationwide expansion of BORSTAR has resulted in thousands of rescues and related search and rescue operations that saved lives. BORSTAR also provides bi-national training in basic search and rescue techniques to foreign law enforcement officials to further enhance safety along the immediate border area. The creation of SIG has enhanced overall enforcement efforts and provided an improved functional liaison with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other law enforcement entities.

In October 2009, Campaign Stronghold was implemented as a strategy based on focused terrain denial and targeted enforcement geared toward disrupting, dismantling, and defeating targeted transnational criminal organizations. Border Patrol agents made a total of 42,447 apprehensions in San Diego Sector in Fiscal Year 2011. This marks a significant decline resulting in the lowest yearly recorded total since 1969.

Today, San Diego Sector is focused on addressing the continuously changing tactics of transnational criminal organizations. Due to increased land border security, transnational criminal organizations have shifted their illegal activities to include the aerial, subterranean, and maritime domains. In order to effectively protect America's borders, Border Patrol agents conduct their enforcement duties on foot, horseback, and mountain bikes, and utilize various types of vehicles including all-terrain vehicles.

With the increase in smuggling activity in recent years along Southern California's coastal borders, additional Border Patrol agents have been assigned to combat the maritime smuggling of humans and drugs. As a result, San Diego Sector's Primary Operational Domain has increased from 91 coastal border miles to 114. To ensure seamless enforcement, the San Diego Sector Chief Patrol Agent has tactical control of all CBP Office of Air and Marine assets. This ensures that the mission of securing the border on land, along the coast, and in the air is a comprehensive, all-inclusive process.

Today's complex threats are being addressed through intelligence driven operations, as well as through integrated and collaborative operational planning and execution with other Customs and Border Protection agencies. Moreover, San Diego Sector has enhanced its strategic partnerships with other Federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies. In addition, San Diego Sector has dedicated its resources to the California Corridor Campaign and implementation of the 2012-2016 Border Patrol Strategic Plan. These sophisticated strategies focus on collaboration with strategic law enforcement partners and taking a risk-based approach to securing the border. These strategies also ensure a continued investment into strengthening the U.S. Border Patrol through training of personnel, enhancement of technology, and the expansion of inter-agency cooperation.

Chief Patrol Agent: Aaron M. Heitke

Acting Deputy Chief Patrol Agent: Patricia D. McGurk-Daniel

Service Area: The San Diego Sector covers the entire San Diego County.

Sector Headquarters Location: 2411 Boswell Road, Chula Vista, California

Stations: Stations of the San Diego Sector are located in Brown Field, Boulevard, Campo, Chula Vista, El Cajon, Imperial Beach, San Clemente, and Theodore L. Newton (Murrieta), California.

Contact Information: Phone Number (619) 216-4000; Sector Headquarters Mailing Address - 2411 Boswell Rd., Chula Vista, CA 91914-3519

Community Feedback: We strive to provide quality service to our customers. If we have not lived up to this commitment, we would like to know. If we have met or exceeded your expectations, please let us know that as well. To comment on the services provided by this office, please write to the Sector Chief Patrol Agent. If you feel you were mistreated by a Border Patrol employee or wish to make a complaint of misconduct by a Border Patrol employee, you may write to the Chief Patrol Agent.

Employment Opportunities: To obtain information about employment opportunities with the Border Patrol, you may contact this Sector and ask to speak to a recruiter. You will find additional information about careers with the Border Patrol in the Careers section of this website.

Honor Guard: Learn about the San Diego Sector Honor Guard and the Flag Ceremony. Call (619) 241-6065​​​​​​​ for more information.

Public Affairs Office: To receive information concerning community or media-related issues, contact the San Diego Sector Public Affairs Office at (619) 216-4182 or email at SDCICD@cbp.dhs.gov.

Vehicle Seizure Office: Contact the San Diego Sector at (619) 498-9817 for vehicle seizure or asset forfeiture inquiries.

Prosecutions Office: The San Diego Prosecutions Office can be reached by calling (619) 498-9847​​​​​​​.

Centered on the front of the coin is the U.S. Border Patrol badge. It is encircled by concertina wire, symbolizing the importance of a new way of thinking about border security in San Diego. The eight stars on the concertina wire represent each Border Patrol station in the San Diego Sector. At the top of the coin is the U.S. Border Patrol motto - "Honor First."

In the center of the back of the coin is an image with several components. The Border Patrol seal worn by all uniformed agents is at the lower left. The horse-mounted Border Patrol Agent depicts fallen Supervisory Border Patrol Agent who tragically lost his life on September 7, 2001. The agent symbolizes every agent who has stood watch on "The Line," while honoring the fallen agents who have made the ultimate sacrifice. A section of border fence along the Imperial Beach coastline, the western-most point of the Southwest Border, and the San Diego, California skyline are also represented. Encircling the center are two phrases, "Preserving the Past - Embracing the Future," to recognize the legacy of the U.S. Border Patrol as the agency moves forward and builds upon its past success; and "Vigilance, Integrity, Service to Country," the core values of the U.S. Border Patrol.

Along the edge of the coin are the three-letter abbreviations for each of the eight U.S. Border Patrol stations in the San Diego Sector.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Aaron M. HeitkeChief Patrol Agent The San Diego Sector encompasses 56,831 square miles including 931 miles of coastal border from the California border with Mexico north to Oregon. San Diego Sector's primary operational area of responsibility consists of 7,000 square miles including 60 linear miles of international boundary with Mexico and 114 coastal border miles along the Pacific Ocean.

# data[].attributes.headline
Calexico, El Paso, Laredo, Brownsville, Eagle Pass and Nogales

# data[].attributes.subject
Calexico, El Paso, Laredo, Brownsville, Eagle Pass and Nogales

# data[].attributes.body
The MPP program was expanded eventually to the enter U.S.-Mexico border.

# data[].attributes.body
Even though the people are returned to 7 different areas in Mexico, they are responsible for their own travel to the immigration court that might not be nearby.

# data[].attributes.body
Okay, so we’re not actually the U.S. State Department – this is a parody website. We are RAICES – a humanitarian organization. We defend the rights of immigrants and refugees, empower individuals, families, and communities, and advocate for liberty and justice. This new immigration policy that the government is calling The Migrant Protection Protocols has left us sickened by the way immigrants and refugees are being treated.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
TRAVEL ADVISORY FOR MEXICAN STATE OF TAMAULIPAS (U.S. CITIZENS) LEVEL 4

Do not travel due to crime and kidnapping.

Violent crime, such as murder, armed robbery, carjacking, kidnapping, extortion, and sexual assault, is common. Gang activity, including gun battles and blockades, is widespread. Armed criminal groups target public and private passenger buses as well as private automobiles traveling through Tamaulipas, often taking passengers hostage and demanding ransom payments. Federal and state security forces have limited capability to respond to violence in many parts of the state.

U.S. government employees may only travel within a limited radius between the U.S. Consulates in Nuevo Laredo and Matamoros and their respective U.S. Ports of Entry. U.S. government employees may not travel between cities in Tamaulipas using interior Mexican highways and they must observe a curfew between midnight and 6:00 a.m. in the cities of Matamoros and Nuevo Laredo.

THE MIGRANT PROTECTION PROTOCOL EXCEPTION (ASYLUM-SEEKERS)

The Level 4 Advisory warning U.S. Citizens not to travel to the Mexican state of Tamaulipas does not apply to foreign individuals and refugees seeking admission to the U.S. from Mexico. Those foreign individuals classified under The Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) will be assisted in their journey to Tamaulipas, and welcome to stay for as long as needed!

The Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) are a U.S. Government action whereby certain foreign individuals entering or seeking admission to the U.S. from Mexico - illegally or without proper documentation - may be returned to Mexico and wait outside of the U.S. for the duration of their immigration proceedings, where Mexico will provide them with all appropriate humanitarian protections for the duration of their stay.

Under MPP, many foreign individuals seeking admission to the U.S. from Mexico have been returned to Mexico across the length of the border, including to the cities of Matamoros, Reynosa and Nuevo Laredo in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas. These cities provide a safe, comfortable place to wait while their case is being processed. For those who have been returned to Mexico under MPP and are contemplating a long stay: ¡Bienvenidos a Matamoros!

To learn more about MPP visit https://www.raicestexas.org/stopmpp

About This State Department Holiday Travel Advisory

Okay, so we're not actually the U.S. State Department - this is a parody website. We are RAICES - a humanitarian organization. We defend the rights of immigrants and refugees, empower individuals, families, and communities, and advocate for liberty and justice. This new immigration policy that the government is calling The Migrant Protection Protocols has left us sickened by the way immigrants and refugees are being treated. They come to the United States border asking for help, and instead of receiving help they are dumped in incredibly dangerous border cities in Mexico where they are left to fend for themselves. We just don't think it's right that the government is telling its own citizens that it's too dangerous to travel to Matamoros and other border cities, but then dumping refugees in these exact same cities. This is all being done in your name. We made this to get the word out so hopefully people will wake up and demand our elected officials change course.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Do Not Travel to Certain Regions in Mexico. Holiday travel guidelines provided here. Press Business Current Employees Job Seekers Students Travelers State Department Home Policy Issues Countries & Areas About Bureaus & Offices Menu State Department Home Search Mexico Holiday Travel Advisory - Level 4 - Do Not Travel To Certain Regions in Mexico TRAVEL...

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Asylum Seekers Wait in Danger in Matamoros, Mexico

# data[].attributes.headline
So desperate they are sending their children over alone

# data[].attributes.subject
So desperate they are sending their children over alone

# data[].attributes.body
Josue was 5. Madeline was 3. With mom Marili, they were fleeing gang violence in Honduras.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Many migrants seeking asylum and waiting for their U.S. court dates are living in a refugee camp, shown early this month, in Matamoros, Mexico. (Eric Gay/AP)

MATAMOROS, Mexico - In the middle of the largest refugee camp on the U.S. border - close enough to Texas that migrants can see an American flag hovering across the Rio Grande - Marili's children had fallen ill.

Josue was 5. Madeline was 3. The small family was huddled together in a nylon camping tent with two blankets last week when the temperature sank to 37 degrees. The children started coughing, Marili said. Then their fingers and toes turned bright red. The camp's doctor had begun to see cases of frostbite.

Like most of the roughly 1,600 asylum seekers at the informal camp, Marili and her children had crossed the border into the United States this summer only to be sent back to Mexico to await their asylum cases - part of a year-old U.S. policy called the Migrant Protection Protocols.

In recent weeks, dozens of parents have watched as their children, sleeping outside in the cold, have become sick or despondent. Many decided to get them help the only way they knew how - sending them across the border alone. As Josue and Madeline grew sicker, it was Marili's turn to make a decision.

Post Reports: Waiting for asylum on the southern border

These cases illustrate the human toll of the Trump administration's policy and suggest the United States, Mexico and the United Nations were unprepared to handle many of the unforeseen consequences.

Marili, fleeing gang violence in Honduras, knew that unaccompanied children were admitted into the United States without enduring the MPP bureaucracy and the months-long wait. The 29-year-old mother - who, like others here, asked not to be identified by her last name, for fear it could affect her asylum case - believed that returning home would be suicide. So she bundled up her children in all of their donated winter clothes and scrawled a letter to U.S. immigration officials on a torn piece of paper.

"My children are very sick and exposed to many risks in Mexico," she wrote. "I don't have any other way to get them to safety."

She pressed the letter into Josue's hand, she said, and pointed the children to three U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents in the middle of the Gateway International Bridge, the span across the Rio Grande that connects Matamoros to Brownsville, Tex.

"Josue told me, 'Please don't send us,' " Marili said, crying at the memory. "But as a mother, I knew it was the best decision for them."

Then she sprinted to the bottom of the bridge and watched through the fence as her children turned themselves in, weeping and wondering when she would see them again, hoping they would find their way to her husband. He had entered the United States and applied for asylum before MPP was implemented. He was allowed to stay.

When they filed their asylum claim, they were told to wait in Mexico. There, they say, they were kidnapped.

In the past three weeks, migrants and aid workers say, at least 50 children have made the same crossing. The Washington Post interviewed the parents of 20 of them. On Tuesday morning, three more children were sent over. On Wednesday, another three. From tent to tent, families now talk openly about whether and when they will send their children.

More than 47,000 migrants have been sent back to Mexico since MPP started in January. Through September, 9,974 cases had been completed; only 11 migrants, or 0.1 percent, had received asylum, according to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, or TRAC, a research center at Syracuse University.

"It's becoming clear to us that this whole thing is a lie," said Reyna, 38, who sent her 15-year-old daughter, Yoisie, across the border last week. "They tell us to wait and wait and wait, but no one here gets asylum."

The Department of Homeland Security did not return calls seeking comment.

Asylum seekers began sleeping out in the wooded field here at the base of the international bridge in August. They receive no assistance from the United States or the United Nations. They rely instead on tents, clothing and food donated by a group of American retirees and medical attention from a nonprofit group whose one doctor sits under a blue tarp.

U.N. officials say they were told months ago that the migrants would be moved by the Mexican government to better conditions. It hasn't happened.

"We started hearing about the situation, but we just didn't have enough capacity to help," said Dora Giusti, the head of child protection at UNICEF in Mexico. "And the Mexican government kept saying [the migrants] would be moved out of the state, so we were waiting to see if we could respond there."

The U.N. refugee agency says border cities in Tamaulipas state, where Matamoros is located, "are among the most insecure and dangerous in the country, which has limited our actions on the ground."

A 19-year-old Salvadoran woman wanted to reunite with her father in California. She was shot dead in Mexico.

The municipal government opened a shelter at an indoor basketball court last month. With a capacity of 300, it's already full. It's also miles from the bridge, making it more difficult for migrants to reach the border for their court dates, or to meet with pro-bono lawyers. Every day, the U.S. government sends dozens of migrants to Matamoros under MPP. They are taken directly to the encampment and often sleep outside until they find a tent.

Migrants seeking asylum wash their clothes in the Rio Grande on Nov. 20 in the migrant encampment in Matamoros, Mexico, a few yards from Brownsville, Texas. (Kevin Sieff / The Washington Post)

The camp consists of hundreds of tents clustered together on a spit of sidewalk and a stretch of scrubland along the Rio Grande. There are only a few showers, so many people bathe and wash their clothes in the river. Once a dead cow floated by and became lodged next to the camp. Another time, the headless corpse of a man washed ashore.

A cold front settled here for three days last week. Immediately, children started getting sick.

Gabrielle, 15 - from San Pedro Sula, Honduras - started coughing. Sarai, 12 - also from Honduras, from Santa Rosa de Copan - was vomiting. Valeria, 5 - from the Honduran capital, Tegucigalpa - developed a fever and became despondent.

Global Response Management, the Florida-based nonprofit that runs the small medical clinic under the blue tarp, saw a surge in patients, most of them children. The most common cases were respiratory illnesses, said Megan Algeo, the doctor on call at the time. In one case, Algeo said, she persuaded U.S. immigration agents to admit a child for emergency care.

Elderly Mexicans are visiting their undocumented children in Mexico - with the help of the State Department

Parents in different parts of the camp decided it wasn't fair to keep their children here. Some joined a Facebook group to discuss their options and what would happen if their children crossed the border alone.

"I kept thinking, my daughter is going to die here," said Blanca, Valeria's mother.

They all had relatives in the United States. Their idea was to send their children to live with spouses, siblings, cousins while they waited in Matamoros to complete the asylum process. They worried about another cold front, or another flood (there was one in September), or cartel-sponsored kidnappings.

Gabrielle walked across the bridge alone, carrying a plastic bag with her asylum papers. Sarai went with a friend. Valeria and her sister, Anahi, 7, crossed together, holding hands.

All are now in shelters in different parts of the United States. Under U.S. policy, children who enter the country unaccompanied are taken into government custody until authorities can connect them with relatives to whom they can be released.

Glady Cañas, who runs Helping Them Triumph, one of the few humanitarian organizations at the camp, tries to persuade parents not to send their children alone.

"Why did you send your child?" she demanded of Israel, Gabrielle's father.

Israel, 40, stared at the ground. They were standing in front of his blue tent.

"She was sick," he said. "We were desperate. A child can't wait here for a year like this."

Cañas hugged him.

"I personally don't agree with what they are doing," she said later. "A child needs their parents. But when you look around here, you understand the desperation."

Falling coffee prices drive Guatemalan migration to the United States

For many families here, the children - and the threats against them - were the reason they fled their countries in the first place.

Victor, 28, left El Salvador with his daughter, Arleth, now 10, after she was sexually assaulted by a man affiliated with a local gang. Victor pressed charges. He carries court documents and hospital records that substantiate the case in alarming detail. The man was sentenced to 12 years in prison for "sexual aggression of a minor," one court transcript says.

As soon as he was sentenced, Victor said, gang members came after the family. In August, they fled.

Victor and Arleth were sent back to Matamoros on Aug. 28, before tents were available. They spent 15 days sleeping outside. Eventually, he found a job in a Chinese restaurant earning $7 per day. He saved up and bought a camping tent.

But after two months, Arleth was sick, vomiting all the time. Their tent had flooded twice in the rain. After her assault, she struggled to remain calm in large groups of people, and she hated walking across the camp to use one of the portable toilets.

Victor took her several times to the Doctors Without Borders nurse who came to the camp twice a week. But she never improved.

Their ancestors fled U.S. slavery for Mexico. Now they're looking north again.

In late September, on Arleth's 10th birthday, Victor bought her a cake and five candles. He asked someone in a neighboring tent to take a picture of them smiling.

When her health did not improve, Victor asked her what she thought of crossing alone.

"She told me: 'Dad, I just want to be out of this place. I want to be in the United States,' " he said.

Lawyers working in the camp have recently become aware of the many parents choosing to send their children alone.

"These parents have been forced to consider an unthinkable choice - to save their children by sending them into the U.S. alone or to keep them in northern Mexico, where they will be exposed to severe illness, kidnapping, torture and rape," said Rochelle Garza of the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas.

During the last week of October, Victor walked Arleth to the edge of the international bridge and watched her shuffle toward U.S. immigration agents.

"We had never been apart," he said later, crying. "Her entire life, we had always been together. . . .

"People might hear what I did and think I'm a bad parent. But it's the opposite. I did this for my daughter because we had no other choice to save her."

For a week he didn't hear from her. Then she called his mother back in El Salvador. She was at a government shelter somewhere in Texas. The details were hazy.

His mother recorded a message from daughter to father.

"Don't worry, Dad. I'm okay," she said. "I hope that soon you'll be with me."

He played the message over and over and cried.

"The truth is I don't have much confidence that my case is going to work out," he said. "I'm fighting it for her. But I don't know."

A school teaches young Guatemalans skills to find success in their country. They don't know it's funded by the U.S. government, to keep them from migrating north.

Mexico is sending its new national guard to the Guatemala border. The mission is unclear.

Cubans were once privileged migrants to the United States. Now they're stuck at the border, like everyone else.

Today's coverage from Post correspondents around the world

Like Washington Post World on Facebook and stay updated on foreign news

Today's Headlines

The most important news stories of the day, curated by Post editors and delivered every morning.

By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
In squalid Mexico tent city, asylum seekers are growing so desperate they're sending their children over the border alone

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
MATAMOROS, Mexico - In the middle of the largest refugee camp on the U.S. border - close enough to Texas that migrants can see an American flag hovering across the Rio Grande - Marili's children had fallen ill. Josue was 5. Madeline was 3.

# data[].attributes.headline
Asylum seekers are being allowed to enter the country

# data[].attributes.subject
Asylum seekers are being allowed to enter the country

# data[].attributes.body
They expect to process 300 people a day

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
SAN DIEGO (CBSLA) - Rep. Nanette Barragán traveled to the border this week to see for herself that more families seeking asylum in the U.S. are being allowed entry at the San Ysidro point of entry in San Diego.

Thousands of asylum seekers had been forced to wait in Mexico for years under the Migrant Protection Protocols program, one of former President Trump's most restrictive immigration policies. The policy had required people seeking refuge in the U.S. to wait on the Mexico side of the border while their cases are decided.

READ MORE: LA County Surpasses 20K COVID-19 Deaths; Test Positivity Rate Falls to 5.1%

Barragán, chairwoman of the House Border Security committee, said she had seen last year the "horrific" living conditions people seeking asylum in the U.S. were forced to return to in Mexico in Matamoros.

One of the families Barragán watched make entry was a family with two young girls, ages 3 and 6. The family had been in the MPP program for 14 months.

"It was impossible for me not to cry. It was so emotional to see these families coming in," Barragán said in a video she posted on Twitter.

READ MORE: LA County Adopts Ordinance Requiring $5 Hero Pay For Grocery Workers

President Joe Biden had pledged to rescind the MPP program, which denied entry to more than 65,000 asylum seekers. The Biden Administration estimates only 25,000 still have active immigration court cases.

Asylum seekers must have an appointment before they can cross the border, and they must submit to a COVID-19 test before quarantining in a local hotel.

Republican Rep. Darrell Issa, who represents parts of San Diego and Riverside counties, slammed the Biden Administration's move to ease immigration policies.

"The Biden Administration's decision to escort 25,000 migrants into this country during a global pandemic is reckless and ill-conceived," he said in a statement.

MORE NEWS: Celebrities, Fellow Athletes Offer Well Wishes, Prayers To Tiger Woods Following Car Crash

Two more ports of entry in Texas will also begin allowing entry to asylum seekers this coming week. The Biden Administration says they expect to eventually process 300 people per day at the ports.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Asylum Seekers Trickle Through San Ysidro As Biden Administration Eases Immigration Policies

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
SAN DIEGO (CBSLA) - Rep. Nanette Barragán traveled to the border this week to see for herself that more families seeking asylum in the U.S. are being allowed entry at the San Ysidro point of entry in San Diego.

# data[].attributes.body
1) How should we provide for asylum seekers upon entry to the United States?
2) Should we even work with another country when it comes to asylum seekers, like the stated goal to work with Mexico?