The Biden administration remains in denial on illegal immigration and must accept the fact "we're full" and start turning migrants away, according to Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.
"Here's what I will tell you about the administration, accept the idea that we're full," Graham told CBS' "Face the Nation." "Give us take the tools we're willing to give you to stop the inflow, start deporting people here who should be, you know, deported. Then you'll turn things around pretty quickly.
"To the Biden administration, accept the tools that will change things, and we'll get money for Ukraine."
Congress is attempting to bolster aid for Ukraine and Israel, which are waging wars during the final year of the Biden administration, but Republicans are demanding the U.S. first close its border before we aid Ukraine and Israel to defend theirs, Graham contended to host Margaret Brennan.
"We need to do it, not only for Ukraine, but for our own national security," Graham said. "I look at the border problems as a national security nightmare for America. The threats to America are at an all-time high from jihadist groups, we have a broken border, 300,000 people in December alone — up about 400% from 2020.
"We're asking the administration to use Title 42-type authority to tell people we're full. It takes four years to get your asylum claim heard. We have 1.7 million people who are ready to be deported, but they just won't deport them.
"We need to send some people out of the country to stop the inflow, but Title 42 authority in the hands of any administration willing to use it would stop this. When you come to our border. We say I'm sorry, we're full."
Democrat mayors in sanctuary cities of New York, Chicago, and Denver are coalescing to call for more aid in their cities to accept migrants, instead of pressing the Biden administration to get to the root of the problem along the southern border as Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott is forced to do.
"Our system is broken," Graham continued. "You're going to have mayors talking about more money to help relocate migrants. We're not gonna have a remain in Texas policy. I don't know if Abbott will win in court having a state law to deal with this. I don't know if he will or not, but he's a desperate man trying to protect his state.
"So, to the mayors, call up the White House and say, We're Republicans to change asylum, change parole, but implement a Title 42 authority that would stop the inflow. We're full. Don't come."
Congress can toughen immigration law, but the Biden administration is not enforcing laws at the border as it is, Graham warned.
"Well, under our law, you're supposed to parole people on the individual basis," he said. "They're using humanitarian parole, a concept not even in law, to parole people at 145,000 a clip. I want to go back to the original intent of the law.
"I don't want to do anything dramatic. I just want to enforce the law. The asylum laws are being abused, let's change them.
"Title 42 authority needs to be reapplied here on the concept that America is full. If you have to wait four years for an asylum hearing, let's slow down the asylum system: 1.7 billion people are ready to be deported. Let's deport them before we let new people in."