President-elect Donald Trump's designated border czar issued a warning to migrants seeking to cross the southern border illegally before Inauguration Day.
Tom Homan, Trump's border czar who has said mass deportation of illegal migrants will begin on Day 1 of Trump's second White House term, told NewsNation that the "catch and release" policy under President Joe Biden will be brought to an abrupt end.
Under catch and release, migrants who crossed the border illegally were allowed to remain in the country until their asylum hearings.
That should be a warning to migrants, according to Homan.
"They need to hear, they need to understand, 'Do not sell everything you own or give it to the criminal cartels to be smuggled into the United States because you're not going to stay,'" Homan told NewsNation.
"Stay in your homeland. Be safe. Crossing into this country illegally is very dangerous."
The New York Post reported Tuesday that Venezuelan gang members were threatening to attack border guards preventing them from entering the U.S.
Last week, 20 armed Tren de Aragua members tried to force their way through a border gate, the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) said in a memo, which added that another attempt to break through was expected for New Year's Day.
Immigration officials and agents have warned that a surge of immigrants seeking to cross the border illegally before Trump takes office remained possible.
Several caravans of migrants have broken free from Mexico's southernmost point in Tapachula near the Guatemalan border and continued toward the U.S.-Mexico border. Smaller segments of those caravans have arrived in Eagle Pass, Texas, NewsNation reported.
Two unaccompanied girls, ages 5 and 9, were found after being abandoned by a smuggler in Eagle Pass. Texas DPS said that the girls, from El Salvador, had a note that included an address and phone number.
Homan told NewsNation that many migrants are ignoring warnings in an attempt to get family members across the border before Trump takes office Jan. 20.
Homan offered one solution for migrants wanting to stay safe.
"Stay home," he said.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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