Saturday, May 8, 2021

BANKSTER-OWNED JANET YELLEN - 'I DON'T THINK THE ADDITION TO UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION IS REALLY A FACTOR IN JOBLESS NUMBERS - THAT'S CAUSED BY BIDEN'S FLOODING AMERICA WITH 'CHEAP' LABOR FOR HIS CRONIES'

 

Yellen: ‘I Don’t Think the Addition to Unemployment Compensation Is Really a Factor That’s Making a Difference’ in Unemployment Numbers

By Melanie Arter | May 7, 2021 | 5:13pm EDT

 
 
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen speaks during the daily press briefing on May 7, 2021, in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC. (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen speaks during the daily press briefing on May 7, 2021, in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC. (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

(CNSNews.com) – Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Friday that the extra unemployment compensation funds were not a factor that made a difference in last month’s jobs numbers.

As CNSNews.com reported, the economy added 266,000 jobs in April, far fewer than the 770,000 (revised) added in March and the 536,000 added in February.


The secretary cited lack of child care and full-time in-person schooling as well as concern about the health consequences of the pandemic.

So first of all, I would note that the jobs report is a little bit stronger than the headline numbers might suggest on the hiring front. The number of people working part-time for economic reasons, namely involuntary part-time work, that number declined by 600,000, and hours- average hours of work ticked up by a 10th, so that means an extra margin in which employers are able to boost their labor is by adding to hours of existing employees, and that those employees want that extra work. They were involuntarily working part-time. 

The labor market is volatile from month to month, and I think the best thing is to average through and say we’ve been creating over 500,000 jobs a month on average over the last three months. It’s clear that there are people who are not ready and able to go back into the labor force. Many children are back in school but not on a regular schedule.

It’s a challenge for parents to manage schedules where one child is in school a couple days a week and another child is in school some different days during the week, so caregiving responsibilities in absence of childcare are still important reasons why people are unable to return to work. You know concern about the pandemic and the health consequences I think remains a factor for many.

You know, I don’t think that the additional, the addition to unemployment compensation is really a factor that’s making a difference. There’s no question we’re hearing from businesses that they are having difficulty hiring workers, although over 300,000 workers I’d point out were added this last month in leisure and hospitality, which is the most badly affected sector, but when we look across states or across sectors or across workers, and if that were really the extra benefits that were holding back hiring, you’d see that even in states or for workers or in sectors where the replacement rate due to UI is very high. 

You would expect to see lower job finding rates, and in fact, what you see is the exact opposite. You know, we have had a very unusual hit to our economy and the road back is going to be somewhat bumpy. We have to expect there are a variety of bottlenecks that are also relevant. So we’ve seen motor vehicle production shutdown in some places because of a shortage of semiconductors. There was a loss of jobs there this month.

They were setbacks in the lumber industry because of shortages there. Starting up an economy again trying to get it back on track after a pandemic in which there are a lot of supply bottlenecks is going to be I think a bumpy process, but I really don’t think the major factor is the extra unemployment.

Yellen said that April’s jobs represented “continued progress.”


"We have added an average of over half a million jobs during the past three months, and we saw promising growth with 331,000 jobs in leisure and hospitality, which includes the restaurants and bars that have been so badly battered by this pandemic," she said.

"We should also be encouraged by the ongoing expansion of the labor force. It’s a promising sign of our economy winning out over the pandemic. Last month, the labor market expanded as more people reported they are looking for work. Hours are increasing, and the share of workers forced into part-time jobs is declining. Indeed, we have made remarkable progress. After all, one year ago, we learned we’d lost over 20 million jobs in one single month," Yellen added.

The secretary said that when she first came to Washington in the early ‘90s, “a higher percentage of American women worked than almost any other developed nation.”

Out of the 22 wealthiest countries, we ranked 6th in the labor force participation. By 2010, America fell to 17th. By the eve of the pandemic, women’s labor force participation was hovering somewhere near where it had been in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s.

Male labor force participation has fared even worse. A smaller percentage of men are working now than at any point in the last 70 years. There are many drivers to these trends, but as my colleagues at the Council of Economic Advisers have pointed out, an undeniable one is the lack of support for people as they raise children and care for older relatives.

Our policymaking has not accounted for the fact that people’s work lives and their personal lives are inextricably linked, and if one suffers, so does the other. The pandemic has made this very clear. Between February and April of 2020, 4.2 million women dropped out of the labor force in large part due to an unexpected caregiving burden. Nearly 2 million have not yet returned.

The challenge before us is to help these 2 million women to return to the labor market, but to help the millions of other workers who left prior to the pandemic to do the same. It’s a core reason that last week President Biden proposed the American Families Plan. The plan offers up to $8000 to pay for child care and make sure kids from low-income families can attend for free.

It offers universal pre-K to three- and four-year-olds, and it provides up to 12 weeks unpaid family and medical leave. With today’s jobs numbers, I am confident we will have a strong, prosperous economy this year and in 2022, but what about the rest of the decade in the years beyond? Our country’s long-term economic health depends on whether we invest in American families and workers, and I’m very hopeful we will.

More Americans Working in April, But the Unemployment Rate Rises to 6.1%

By Susan Jones | May 7, 2021 | 7:49am EDT

 
 

The travel industry is among those making a comeback from the darkest days of the COVID pandemic. (Photo by DANIEL SLIM/AFP via Getty Images)
The travel industry is among those making a comeback from the darkest days of the COVID pandemic. (Photo by DANIEL SLIM/AFP via Getty Images)

(CNSNews.com) - Friday's jobs report reflects a reopening economy that still has a long way to go to match its Trump-era strength.

Contrary to bullish expectations, the unemployment rate actually ticked up a tenth of a point to 6.1 percent in April, and the economy added 266,000 jobs, far fewer than the 770,000 (revised) added in March and the 536,000 added in February.

Notably, the number of employed Americans increased in April for the 12th consecutive month since the economy tanked under COVID pressure in April 2020. Last month, BLS said 151,176,000 Americans were employed. That is 318,000 more than in March, and 1,145,000 more than when Joe Biden took office in January.

But the number of unemployed American also increased (+102,000) to 9,812,000 last month, boosting the unemployment rate slightly.

In April, the civilian non-institutional population in the United States was 261,103,000. That included all people 16 and older who did not live in an institution, such as a prison, nursing home or long-term care facility.

Of that civilian non-institutional population, 160,988,000 were participating in the labor force, meaning they either had a job or were actively seeking one during the last month. This resulted in a labor force participation rate of 61.7 percent in April, an improvement from the 61.5 percent rate in March.

The number of Americans counted as not in the labor force, meaning they didn't have a job and were not looking for one -- dipped again in April to 100,115,000 compared with 100,445,000 in March. Of those 100,115,000 counted as not in the labor force, BLS said 2.8 million were prevented from looking for work in April because of the pandemic. That number is down from 3.7 million in March.

BLS also notes that 9.4 million people said they were unable to work in April because their employer closed or lost business due to the pandemic--that is, they did not work at all or worked fewer hours at some point in the last 4 weeks due to the pandemic. This measure is down from 11.4 million in the previous month.

Among those who reported in April that they were unable to work because of pandemic-related closures or lost business, 9.3 percent received at least some pay from their employer for the hours not worked, little changed from the previous month.

Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rates for adult men (6.1 percent), adult women (5.6 percent), teenagers (12.3 percent), Whites (5.3 percent), Blacks (9.7 percent), Asians (5.7 percent), and Hispanics (7.9 percent) showed little or no change in April.

The Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics said notable job gains occurred in leisure and hospitality, increasing by 331,000, as pandemic-related restrictions eased in many parts of the country.

More than half of the increase was in food services and drinking places (+187,000). Job gains also occurred in amusements, gambling, and recreation (+73,000) and in accommodation (+54,000). Although leisure and hospitality has added 5.4 million jobs over the year, employment in the industry is down by 2.8 million, or 16.8 percent, since February 2020.

BLS said notable employment declines occurred in temporary help services, in couriers and messengers, in manufacturing and in retailing.

Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) told Fox News on Friday he thinks a "combination of factors" accounts for Friday's lackluster jobs report:

"Some people are reluctant to go back to the (work) environment -- they're still concerned about COVID," Toomey said. "Other people have problems that their kids aren't back in school so they're at home. And another factor in all of this is systematically paying unemployment benefits that are more than a person makes working doesn't create an environment that's particularly conducive for going back to work."

President Joe Biden will speak about today's jobs report later on this Friday, no doubt taking another opportunity to promote his American Jobs Plan.

The business and economic reporting of CNSNews.com is funded in part with a gift made in memory of Dr. Keith C. Wold.

George W. Bush Lobbies Republicans to Work with Joe Biden on Amnesty for Illegal Aliens

PHILADELPHIA, PA - NOVEMBER 11: Seated on the dais are former Vice President Joe Biden, former US President George W. Bush, National Constitution Center Executive Committee Chairman Doug DeVos and National Constitution Center Executive Committee Chairman President and CEO Jeffrey Rosen await presentation of the 2018 Liberty Medal at The …
William Thomas Cain/Getty Images
3:04

Former President George W. Bush is lobbying House and Senate Republicans to work with President Joe Biden on amnesty for illegal aliens.

In an interview with the Dispatch Podcast, Bush said Biden and Republicans ought to strike a deal to provide amnesty, at the least, to illegal aliens enrolled in or eligible for former President Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

“I think piecemeal probably makes sense and I think the president, if I could be so bold, is calling Republicans like-minded and saying ‘Let’s see if we can get something done,'” Bush said.

“Comprehensive may be too big of a reach right now,” Bush continued. “Like if they can get DACA done with some kind of border enhancement, you know plans to give Republicans comfort in voting for the bill, then all of the sudden there’s confidence to be gained.”

The statements come as Bush helps lead a charge among a Democrat-Republican coalition, big business interests, and the open borders lobby to provide amnesty to potentially millions of illegal aliens — a plan to which Biden gave a resounding endorsement in his first address to Congress last week.

In the address, Biden touted his amnesty for 11 to 22 million illegal aliens living in the United States while also urging Congress to pass two other amnesties: One for potentially 4.4 million illegal aliens and another for 2.1 million illegal aliens working on farms.

Bush, in recent weeks, revealed he is working the Koch network — run by the billionaire Koch brothers estate — to help Biden pass amnesty for illegal aliens. Not passing amnesty, Bush previously said, was his biggest disappointment as president.

The push comes as a survey from the pro-migration, Koch-funded Cato Institute reveals the extent to which Bush is out of step with Republican and conservative voters, as well as the majority of Americans.

The survey found 6-in-10 Americans want less overall immigration to the U.S., including 75 percent of Republicans and 76 percent of conservatives. Similarly, the survey showed 72 percent of Americans would prefer less immigration to the U.S. and more public benefits over more immigration and less public benefits.

Likewise, the survey confirmed opposing birthright citizenship is a mainstream Republican-held position.

In exclusive statements to Breitbart News, Republican staffers on Capitol Hill described Bush as an irrelevant globalist who does not represent the GOP’s base of voters or the majority of those in elected office.

“Republicans are well aware that his presidency was a national disaster on this issue as he failed to act when needed. Bush immigration policy has no impact today other than a reference on what not to do,” one House GOP aide said.

John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jbinder@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter here

150 Migrants Apprehended, Armed Smuggler Arrested in Failed Smuggling Attempts near Border in Texas

Human smugglers pack migrants into luggage area in SUV. (U.S. Border Patrol/Del Rio Sector)
U.S. Border Patrol/Del Rio Sector
0:47

Del Rio Sector Border Patrol agents apprehended more than 150 migrants and an armed human smuggler in multiple failed human smuggling attempts over the weekend. The arrests took place as smugglers packed migrants into a variety of vehicles, including a stolen vehicle.

Del Rio Sector Chief Patrol Agent Austin Skero tweeted photos of multiple failed smuggling attempts where human smugglers packed migrants into vehicles. The interdictions led to the arrest of more than 150 migrants and at least one armed smuggler during vehicle stops by Border Patrol agents and other law enforcement partners.

Skero reported at least one of the human smugglers arrested had a gun in their possession. In another smuggling incident, agents recovered a stolen vehicle.

Skero also tweeted the punishment handed down to a U.S. citizen teenager who was recruited into the human smuggling business with promises of “easy money.” The 19-year-old convicted human smuggler now faces a sentence of 24 months in prison and three years of probation, Skero stated.

Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior news contributor for the Breitbart Texas-Border team. He is an original member of the Breitbart Texas team. Price is a regular panelist on Fox 26 Houston’s What’s Your Point? Sunday-morning talk show. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX and Facebook.

Migrant Charged with Threatening Fellow Traveler with Knife to Avoid Arrest

Agents arrested Eduardo Segovia-Luna after he allegedly held a knife to a fellow migrant in an attempt to avoid apprehension. (Photo: U.S. Border Patrol/Laredo Sector)
Photo: U.S. Border Patrol/Laredo Sector
1:34

A Laredo Sector Border Patrol agent successfully arrested a Mexican migrant who allegedly threatened a fellow migrant. The migrant reportedly put a knife to the other migrant’s neck in an attempt to avoid apprehension.

A Laredo South Station Border Patrol agent apprehended a group of three migrants on Thursday, according to a tweet from Chief Border Patrol Agent Matthew Hudak. As the agent attempted to take the three migrants into custody, one of the migrants pulled a knife and held it to the neck of a fellow traveler.

The agent said the Mexican migrant, later identified as Eduardo Segovia-Luna, tried to use the other migrant as a human shield and demanded to be released. The agent ordered Segovia-Luna to drop his weapon.

A standoff ensued as the agent awaited backup. Once other agents arrived, Segovia-Luna dropped the knife and surrendered, Hudak said in his tweet.

The three migrants reportedly entered the United States illegally.

Segovia-Luna now faces criminal charges connected to the assault on the second migrant, Hudak reported.

Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior news contributor for the Breitbart Texas-Border team. He is an original member of the Breitbart Texas team. Price is a regular panelist on Fox 26 Houston’s Sunday-morning talk show, What’s Your Point? Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX, Parler @BobPrice, and Facebook.

180 Migrants Found in 3 Texas Stash Houses near Border

Laredo Sector agents find 180 migrants in three human smuggling stash houses on May 4. (Photo: U.S. Border Patrol/Laredo Sector)
Photo: U.S. Border Patrol/Laredo Sector
2:58

Laredo Sector Border Patrol agents apprehended more than 180 migrants in three human smuggling stash houses. The arrests came in raids on three residences in the Laredo, Texas, area within hours of each other on May 4.

Laredo South Border Patrol Station agents and the Laredo Special Operations Detachment (SOD) teamed up with ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents and Webb County Constables Office (WCCO) Precinct 2 deputies to investigate a possible human smuggling stash house located in central Laredo, according to information obtained from Laredo Sector Border Patrol officials.

The law enforcement team conducted a welfare check on the residence and found 68 migrants who were illegally present in the United States.

Later that day, Laredo South Station agents received information about a second human smuggling operation at a house located in south Laredo. The law enforcement team arrived and found 50 more migrants packed inside the residence.

The team assembled once again Tuesday night to investigate a third possible stash house for the day. In this incident, the law enforcement team discovered 65 migrants.

In total the team arrested more than 180 migrants, all illegally present in the United States, officials stated. The agents identified the migrants as foreign nationals from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Mexico. Officials said none of the migrants packed inside the houses wore PPP equipment to deter the spread of COVID-19.

“All of the people rescued from these Stash Houses were being held against their will,” Laredo Sector Deputy Chief Patrol Agent Carl E. Landrum said in a written statement. “Human Smuggling/Trafficking are dangerous situations.  Please help others by reporting suspicious situations you see; you just might save a life.”

Agents provided the migrants with PPP and transported them to the station for processing.

Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior news contributor for the Breitbart Texas-Border team. He is an original member of the Breitbart Texas team. Price is a regular panelist on Fox 26 Houston’s What’s Your Point? Sunday-morning talk show. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX and Facebook.


Thousands of Migrants Freed into U.S. by DHS Resettle in Florida, Texas

CIUDAD JUAREZ, MEXICO - MARCH 16: Asylum seekers leave Mexico while walking into the United States on March 16, 2021 in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. Some 50 asylum seekers were officially allowed to cross the Santa Fe International Bridge as part of the Biden administration's unwinding of the Trump-era Migrant Protection …
John Moore/Getty Images
2:52

Thousands of migrants, enrolled in the now-defunct “Remain in Mexico” program, released into the United States interior are resettling in Florida, Texas, and other states, new data reveals.

After taking office in January, Biden ended the Remain in Mexico program, which had proven remarkably effective in eliminating the Catch and Release policy whereby border crossers are apprehended and subsequently released into the U.S. interior while awaiting their asylum hearings.

As of February, of the more than 71,000 asylum cases under Remain in Mexico, less than one percent of foreign nationals were found to have a legitimate asylum claim.

Biden announced in February that his Department of Homeland Security (DHS), with the help of the United Nations, would start releasing about 25,600 migrants enrolled in the program into the U.S. interior. Breitbart News exclusively reported that the migrants are being released in Brownsville and El Paso, Texas, as well as San Diego, California.

Data compiled by the Transactional Research Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) at Syracuse University shows that nearly 4,000 Remain in Mexico cases out of close to 25,000 pending cases have been transferred out of courts along the U.S.-Mexico border to locations inside the nation’s interior.

The data shows where Remain in Mexico migrants are traveling to once they are released into the U.S. interior. More than 650 have gone to Miami, Florida, while more than 320 have ended up in Orlando, Florida, and more than 200 have resettled in Dallas, Texas.

Likewise, 135 of the cases have been transferred to San Antonio, Texas; 83 transferred to Houston, Texas; 43 transferred to Harlingen, Texas; 19 transferred to El Paso;Texas, and a handful of others transferred to Pearsall and Laredo, Texas.

Hundreds of Remain in Mexico migrants are also resettling in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Diego, California, while more than 140 have ended up in Arlington, Virginia.

As of early April, more than 6,400 Remain in Mexico migrants had been released into the U.S. interior who otherwise would have had to wait in Mexico until their asylum hearing in court.

Even if migrants are deemed ineligible for asylum following their hearing, they are unlikely to be deported from the U.S. thanks to Biden’s “sanctuary country” orders that ensure illegal aliens are not deported unless they have been recently convicted of an aggravated felony.

John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jbinder@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter here

1100 Venezuelans Cross into West Texas Border Town Within 2 Weeks

Venezuelans
Breitbart Texas
2:50

A law enforcement source, speaking on the condition of anonymity, reported the illegal entry of more than 100 Venezuelan nationals south of Del Rio, Texas, early Wednesday morning. The group consisted of mostly family units and was apprehended by Border Patrol. They were transported to nearby stations for processing. Since April 16, Border Patrol agents have apprehended more 1,100 in the area.

On Tuesday, a group of 106 Venezuelans nationals entered in the same area. The groups are entering the United States illegally on a near daily basis.

Most will be summarily released into the community to travel to their destination in the United States. The few single adults within the group will await transfer to ICE for placement in facilities or released under alternatives to detention.

Del Rio, like other cities across the southern border, has seen its share of the increase in migrant traffic. A soft-sided facility was recently opened within the Del Rio Border Patrol Sector to deal with the influx. Del Rio has dealt with large groups of illegal migrants from outside the usual Central American countries normally encountered throughout other border areas.

Because of the relative safety of Ciudad Acuna, directly across from Del Rio, the area is a draw for large groups of Haitians, Cubans, and Central Africans. Cartel violence has slowed in recent years when compared to other cities in Mexico along the border and is the reason many within law enforcement believe Del Rio is the chosen crossing point.

Last month, the Biden Administration granted Temporary Protected Status for Venezuelan nationals for 18 months. The designation applies to those residing in the United States since March 8, 2021. The designation suspends any attempts at removal for the period. Generally, these deadlines are extended–sometimes for years on end. Some critics argue this is a pull factor, encouraging illegal immigration from designated countries.

This group will more than likely be released into the United States to pursue asylum claims even though they would not qualify for the TPS designation. The source reports many of the Venezuelans interviewed during the week directly attributed the suspension of deportations by the Biden Administration as the impetus for their entry into the United States.

Randy Clark
 is a 32-year veteran of the United States Border Patrol.  Prior to his retirement, he served as the Division Chief for Law Enforcement Operations, directing operations for nine Border Patrol Stations within the Del Rio, Texas, Sector. Follow him on Twitter @RandyClarkBBTX.

Exclusive: Migrant ‘Got-Away’ Total Exceeds 185K this Year, Says Source

Rio Grande Valley Sector Border Patrol agent searches for tracks of migrants near Texas border. (File Photo: John Moore/Getty Images)
File Photo: John Moore/Getty Images
3:00

A law enforcement source within Customs and Border Protection says more than 185,000 migrants escaped Border Patrol apprehension so far this fiscal year. On average, more than 30,000 illegal aliens avoided capture in the last 22 days the source said.

Breitbart Texas reported in mid-April, the “got-away” total exceeded more than 155,000 leaving Border Patrol leadership frustrated. Last year, 69,000 illegal migrants managed to avoid apprehension by the Border Patrol. In just over seven months of this fiscal year, which began on October 1, 2020, the number of “got-aways” nearly tripled last year’s totals. Sources report the sharpest increase began in January.

The metric is usually not released by the Department of Homeland Security. It is achieved by counting illegal immigrants who ultimately escape Border Patrol apprehension after being observed by aircraft platforms and camera systems. In addition, Border Patrol agents using traditional sign-cutting techniques identify footprints crossing the border and count those that elude apprehension.

“That’s where it gets tricky,” says one Border Patrol agent who did not wish to be identified. “On a small trail, dozens can walk all over each other’s footprints, so you just do your best. Often, they’ll glue carpet to the soles of their shoes making detection even harder.”

Sources report for these reasons, the “got-away” count is usually lower than reality. How much so is debatable as the latter method of counting is not scientific. The increasing “got-away” numbers come as CBP reports its highest apprehension totals since 2006.

Despite the current administration’s refusal to call the immigration situation on the border a crisis, the recent surges are concerning. The increasing number of unaccompanied migrant children crossing the border has Health and Human Services struggling to find sponsors within the United States. Many believe the impetus for the surges in illegal entries is being fueled by the promise of amnesty legislation. The Biden administration’s new policies regarding lax interior enforcement and a reduction in removals are also believed to be contributing to the surge in activity along the border.

Recent reports concerning the reduced patrols being conducted by the Border Patrol are likely contributing to the surge in the “got-away” count. Addressing the humanitarian needs of thousands of migrants crossing the border directly impacts the Border Patrol’s ability to patrol many remote areas. This situation is likely to worsen as the crisis develops.

Randy Clark is a 32-year veteran of the United States Border Patrol.  Prior to his retirement, he served as the Division Chief for Law Enforcement Operations, directing operations for nine Border Patrol Stations within the Del Rio, Texas Sector.


52 Migrants Found in Texas Human Smuggling Stash Houses near Border

Border Patrol agents find 52 migrants in multiple human smuggling stash houses on April 28. (Photo: U.S. Border Patrol/Rio Grande Valley Sector)
Photo: U.S. Border Patrol/Rio Grande Valley Sector
2:45

Rio Grande Valley Sector Border Patrol agents found 52 migrants in stash houses during a seven-hour period last week.

Rio Grande City Border Patrol Station agents working the border near Garciasville, Texas, on April 28 detected migrant tracks indicating a group illegally crossed the border from Mexico, according to information provided by Border Patrol officials. The agents began following the tracks north from the river.

The agents tracked the group of migrants to a suspected human smuggling stash house. Agents contacted the Starr County Sheriff’s Office for assistance in investigating the possible stash house operation.

While carrying out a welfare check on the residence, agents identified 10 migrants hiding in the home. All were determined to be illegally present in the United States, officials stated.

A few hours later, agents working with Starr County deputies identified three additional homes near Roma, Texas, believed to be operating as human smuggling stash houses. Authorities arrived at all three locations and found several migrants in each house who were identified as being illegally present in the U.S. Agents carried out immigration interviews and identified the 42 migrants as foreign nationals from Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and Nicaragua.

“With help from our law enforcement [partners], we will continue putting pressure on these dangerous smuggling organizations,” Rio Grande Valley Sector Chief Patrol Agent Brian Hastings said in a tweeted message.

Agents transported all of the migrants to Border Patrol stations for processing and possible expulsion under Title 42 coronavirus protection protocols put in place by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“Even with the spread of the COVID-19 virus, human smugglers continue to try these brazen attempts with zero regard for the lives they endanger nor to the health of the citizens of our great nation,” Border Patrol officials said in a written statement. “The U.S. Border Patrol agents of the Rio Grande Valley Sector will continue to safeguard the nation and community against these criminal elements.

Texas Game Wardens Rescue 10 Migrants During Rio Grande Border Crossing

Texas Parks and Wildlife game wardens rescue ten migrants from drowning in the Rio Grande in April 2021. (Image: U.S. Border Patrol/Del Rio Sector)
Image: U.S. Border Patrol/Del Rio Sector
3:13

Texas game wardens, DPS troopers, and Del Rio Sector Border Patrol agents teamed up in the rescue of 10 migrants who became distressed while illegally crossing the Rio Grande from Mexico. Game wardens responded after hearing people screaming for help in the river.

“Our agents and partners continue to save the lives of those in need,” Del Rio Sector Chief Patrol Agent Austin Skero tweeted. “With assistance from Texas Game Wardens, we recently responded and rescued 10 migrants that were heard screaming for help from an island in the river.”

The video shows Texas Parks and Wildlife wardens in their river patrol boat approaching the U.S. bank of the Rio Grande with a group of migrant adults and children. The game wardens heard the ten migrants screaming for help and pulled them into their boat.

Once they arrived at the Texas riverbank, Border Patrol agents and Texas Department of Public Safety troopers assisted in offloading the migrants and getting them ready for processing.

Water rescues in the Del Rio Sector have been on the rise in recent months, Chief Skero previously discussed. Just last week, Skero announced the deployment of a new water rescue vessel — a jet ski type watercraft with a towable flotation device, Breitbart Texas reported. This first-of-its-kind Border Patrol rescue vessel will enable Del Rio Sector agents to traverse shallow water to get to migrants in distress more quickly.

“This vessel can be quickly deployed in any water depth, improving our agents’ abilities to conduct rescues or aid agents working from land,” Skero tweeted. “Greater versatility saves both lives and time.”

Earlier this month, these agents rescued a two-year-old child and the child’s parents after agents found them struggling in the Rio Grande. Following this rescue, agents found 20 more migrants trapped on an island in the border river.

About a week earlier, a nine-year-old girl drowned during a border crossing attempt. Agents were unable to revive the girl but managed to revive the child’s mother and a sibling.

Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior news contributor for the Breitbart Texas-Border team. He is an original member of the Breitbart Texas team. Price is a regular panelist on Fox 26 Houston’s What’s Your Point? Sunday-morning talk show. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX and Facebook.


Sanctuary State: Illegal Alien Gets Five Years in Prison for Killing 24-Year-Old

An illegal alien has been sentenced to five years in …
GCCI
1:48

An illegal alien has been sentenced to five years in prison for killing a 24-year-old man in a drunk driving car crash in the sanctuary state of New Jersey.

Jesus Leal-Corona, a 49-year-old illegal alien, pleaded guilty in 2020 to second-degree vehicular homicide, two counts of third-degree vehicular assault, and drunk driving after hitting and killing 24-year-old Frankie Hensley of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in September 2019.

Leal-Corona, who had been living in Monroeville, New Jersey, admitted to police that he was drunk driving when he hit Hensley. At the time of the crash, Hensley was the passenger in a vehicle involved in a separate crash when he got out of the vehicle.

Then, Leal-Corona hit Hensley who was rushed to a nearby hospital and died hours later as a result of his injuries.

Leal-Corona was sentenced to five years in prison for the vehicular homicide charge and must serve 85 percent of his term before becoming eligible for parole. He also received a 3-year sentence for vehicular assault and 30 days in prison for the drunk driving charge.

Before the deadly crash, Leal-Corona had been arrested in Texas and New Jersey. Despite those arrests, Leal-Corona was never deported. New Jersey’s broad sanctuary state policy, which shields criminal illegal aliens from federal arrest and deportation, could prevent Leal-Corona from being turned over to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency following his sentence.

John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jbinder@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter here


Life in Prison for MS-13 Member Convicted in Murder of Texas Teen

Douglas Alexander Herrera-Hernandez (Photo: Harris County Sheriff's Office)
Photo: Harris County Sheriff's Office
3:17

HOUSTON, Texas — A Texas jury rendered a sentence of life without parole to an MS-13 gang member convicted in the killing of a Houston-area teenager. The victim witnessed several gang-related murders before being lured to Missouri City, Texas, for his own execution.

A jury in Harris County, Texas, sentenced Douglas Alexander Herrera-Hernandez, an MS-13 gang member who illegally entered the United States in December 2014, to spend the rest of his life in prison without the possibility of parole for the murder of 16-year-old Estuar Quinonez. The victim suffered 15 gunshot wounds as he sat on a park bench in Buffalo Run Park on June 13, 2016, Fox 26 Houston reported.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) officials confirmed to Breitbart Texas that Herrera-Hernandez, aka “Terror,” entered the U.S. illegally as an Unaccompanied Alien Child (UAC) by crossing the Rio Grande in December 2014. Officials reported the migrant was 17 years old at the time he crossed the border.

Border Patrol agents released him under President Barack Obama’s catch and release policies with a “notice to appear” before an immigration court. A Houston immigration judge issued a final order of removal against Herrera-Hernandez after he failed to appear for his hearing.

Just under one year later, Herrera-Hernandez murdered 16-year-old Estuar Quinonez in Missouri City, Texas, a suburb of Houston, Breitbart Texas reported. Quinones reportedly witnessed several MS-13 gang-related murders. Missouri City police, working with the Houston Police Department, identified the Salvadoran national as a suspect in the murder.

Herrera-Hernandez fled from Texas and was later arrested by police in Virginia in late July 2017, Breitbart Texas reported. In addition to the murder of Quinones, the MS-13 gang member also allegedly shot and killed 26-year-old Kevin Alvarez in southeast Houston on July 9, 2017.

During the trial, prosecutors told the jury that Herrera-Hernandez got permission from MS-13 gang leaders in El Salvador to kill Quinonez, the local Fox affiliate reported. The now-convicted killer gathered several gang members to carry out the execution of the victim. Herrera-Hernandez and another gang member picked up Quinonez and brought him to the park where the gang members fired multiple gunshots including one to the head.

“We are trying to break the back of this organization by sending their assassins to prison for as long as possible and we will remain unrelenting in our pursuit of these criminals who band together to terrorize communities,” Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg told reporters.

Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior news contributor for the Breitbart Texas-Border team. He is an original member of the Breitbart Texas team. Price is a regular panelist on Fox 26 Houston’s What’s Your Point? Sunday-morning talk show. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX and Facebook.