This hearing will come to order i would first say the witnesses for taking the time for your thoughtful testimony and how i say the audience members. Im not sure why youe are not e house i but we really apprecia appreciate, you must been paid staff. But i appreciate everybody coming here. This is from my standpoint, the hearing title is an president migration at the southern border being in review. But what id like to do is to actually start with a decade in review. For everybody to iconic, is the chart that i have been really updating are probably the last three or four years. As you can on the committee. Important to lay out what the history news men. Key moments and policy changes, then i would certainly argue contributed to what you consider an ongoing prices even though they made some progress. But that chart reflects all minors and people coming to this country as family units. Earlier versions only focused on sinful market children and family members. So initially, and 2009 to 11, with 3,004,005,000 or 4070 children per agreement keeping track. In 2012, again i would consider that pretty similar moment was the issuance of the daca random. Which i would argue my testimony was used by the coyotes by the human traffickers, to help them incentivize people. The u. S. Has change his policy, youve come to america and had a piece of paper called the police out. Was notice to appear. Again, i know others may dispute this, i say is pretty obvious as that that certainly started something. Fastforward to 2015, or 2014, it was really the year when president obama very accurately describe the human tear humanitarian crisis on the border. 137,000 as a family unit cross the border and overwhelmed remembered early 2015 down into mchenry or mcallen texas, and we were all singing the praises ofs custom Border Patrol and the humidity they were showing the ingenuity they were showing in setting up the facility to separate children from adults to make sure the children stayed safe. Now the same facilities are called cages. Very improperly so. I say of anything weve got better at it. Just the problem has grown so much more severely. In reaction, to the humanitarian crisis of 2014, the Obama Administration had to do something. Had to be a cause was so they began detaining those families and those Children Together to adjudicate their flames and work. They conceivably have hundred and 37000 down to 80000 in 2016. Then a court intervened escorts are continuing to intervene in this problem. And reinterpreted the settleme settlement, i say clearlyec incorrectly. The settlement dealt with unaccompanied minors and for the first time a course, said ohnoow it also includes accompanying minors so now was we can enforce the law, we are going to have to either detain the adults and with the Obama Administration decided to release a family that began when to refer to as catch and release and you see the results are we from 80237 and hundred 17200 hundred 81000 in fiscal year 2018. It was wrapping up we started talking about caravans and then on the other aisle manufactured crisis. So i started producing this chart a monthly basis. Actually i went to far is dependent on the cup. So i can distribute this to the news media so they just wouldnt take my doorway. To start pointing out, this has brought a manufactured crisis. This is Something Real and this is something overwhelming. The courageous men and women the Border Patrol. The compassionate men and women of Border Patrol you are just trying to deal with something that again is overwhelming. In may, the high water mark. 4651 individuals per day were crossing the border illegally. That is the total number. Its not just women and children and families. 4651 per day. We no longer people talking about manufactured crisis. In may, when i started doing my chart was i started extrapolating to see if this continues and maze levels, would end up with over 800,000 unaccompanied children and people crossing the border as a family unit. 800,000. In the final results, the year in review. What was the final accounting. In the end it was 680,000. People came to this country either as unaccompanied child or as a family unit compared 237,000 president obama declared a humanitarian crisis. So i say we have hopefully laid to rest, that this is a manufactured crisis. We have brought it down in terms of the averages, we want to put year. This is kind of my weekly report. I come from a manufacturing microsoft like to see what my daily, weekly my monthly are sung and went from a 4651 per month per day, per day. To september, we went down to 1749. On average. Now its not showing here because through some unknown reason, this is Law Enforcement sensitive. The members on the committee have this in front of them. The last week, i figured that on it. I can see this figure. An average about 1372. So we got from 4651 to less than 1400 but on our forget an interview with the second secretary jay johnson, secretary on obama, a few months ago he said, if you come to the office and the numbers were more than a thousand. He knew he had a really bad tff. So we are still three new studies on average in one week. And one day over secretary jay johnsons really bad day. Again the purpose of this hearing is to again, they help the reality and talk about where we were and where we have come but i would see, describe what happened. Why did we go and help to me at 246251 a day and how we come down to less than 1400 and what else needs to be done and maybe even more importantnt question, what threatens the progress that weve alreadyea made. And i have to see that i go down to the border. The individuals coming across year, the vast majority just what we want. They want safety and security and they want to take advantage of the opportunity. I am highly sympathetic with that but he has to be in a legal. We have to get the illegal flow on control and it is far from on control. My last. , i dont say center peters and the other members of the committee and other people on the other aisle, the work with me, in the end he decided not sign goleta of support. There is a program this year hopefully mr. Morgan will talk a little bit about that. Basically how can we more rapidly and accurately determine those individuals that come to this country illegally or that went out documentation that clearly dont have ait valid asylum. And safely return them to their home country. And the rail of a contribution senator peter is made to that conversation is going to do Something Like that, lets gather the data. Lets figure out what isat happening. So im hoping we are going to this hearing is certainly some of the data. How many of these flames have been adjudicated. From Central America, many of those individuals actually have a valid asylum claim. Going to address this problem, my standpoint the biggest problem is that we have such a low hurdle, a credible fear standard that we just wave everybody and in the courts are completely backlogged. It is very low percentage of those individuals that we waive and cover end up melding into our society, we dont know where they go. By and large, we dont know where they are. But in the end, they dont have a valid asylum claim. We shouldnt have ever waived them in. We need to increase that initial hurdle rate but we need the data in order to actually add to public policy. So again, what i am hoping is going to come out of this hearing is better data but then also as we move forward with some of these programs that show some success. Seen thank you mr. Chairman and thank you tour where this is here today. Im proud to say over the past year our committee has been able to come together in a bipartisan basis to examine migration and humanitarian challenges so we are facing on the reporter. We found compromise and pass commonsense legislation. We have strengthened security at our northern and southern borders ultimately make our country safer. In june we came together to unanimously advance by partisan bill to strengthen Border Security and address Law Enforcement shortages at ports of entry throughout the country. Last month the full Senate Approved by bill 2 haier morag or cultural inspectors and k9 units to protect the nations foodin supply from harmful contraband. Last week our Committee Approved legislation led by chairman johnson to support the u. S. Border patrol by hiring new agents and support staff and improving retention and providing medicare to agency could save lives. Just yesterday at a chance to see the cbp officers and canaanites in action at the detroit Metropolitan Airport and i was stunned to hear the number of seizures that they make to keep our country safe every day and im proud to men or women of cbp at Detroit Metro league in the nation when it comes to the introduction of harmful biological materials coming across the border. Detroit metro has been under par 1 and or port for the last two fiscal years with more than half of all interceptions that ports of entries nationwide. Detroit has pioneered Training Programs that have been deployed nationally with positive results being generated in boston newark and dulles and among all airports nationwide Detroit Metro is second in the nation for discovery of material containing very harmful pass the damage the lumber industry and agriculture across the border for the species pose certainly a significant threat. The cbp offers in k9s are doing phenomenal work to protect michigan and the rest of the country from harm and im proud to support their efforts every day. This past year however this pose many challenges for Border Security professionals. The situation on our southern border and throughout Central America is dynamic and their Border Security efforts certainly reflect that fact. Often this administrations order Security Policies have been shortsighted and if we are going to successfully or arrest the conditions on our border and the root causes that are driving this migration we need to take a comprehensive approach that data and finds Commonsense Solutions to address these very serious challenges. I appreciate her witnesses joining us here today and for their commitment to serve our country but i also recognizey. Addressing Border Security and humanitarian challenges requires stable and effective leadership. Im deeply concerned and i think the concern is shared by the chair and everyone on the committee as well but the lack of leaders in nearly all at the top leadership positions that the department of Homeland Security. In fact we have three senatesi confirmed positions before us and all three of you are acting, not Senate Confirmed and i will continue to call on this administration to nominate cqualified leaders for these positions who can gain rod bipartisan support in the senate. The men and women of the dhs and the American People deserve stability. They deservedeil accountabilityt comes from nominating and confirming qualified leaders that can assure the department can carry out this National Security mission in a Senate Confirmed position. That permits a stability is absolutely critical that i look forward to hearing your testimony and thank you again for your s service. Thank you senator peters and in terms of getting individuals nominated and confirmed the good news here as we do have some very highly qualified individuals in these acting positions so thats also a bit of good news. If you will stand and raise your right hand. Do you s swear the testimony wil give before this committee will be the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you god . Please be seated. Our first witness is mr. Mark morgan the acting commissioner of customs and Border Protection acting commissioner morgan began serving as a u. S. Marine in the community of local Law Enforcement and through his 20 yearar career Began Service womn in the apartment of Homeland Security as acting commissioner for Eternal Affairs before being appointed by president obama. He served as chief until 2017 returned as director of enforcement and. Good morning thank you chairman johnson Ranking Member peters and members of the committee. I appreciate the opportunity to be here today to be able to inform the American People of the truth about unprecedented crisis we have experienced alono the southwest border during fiscal year 2019 as well as the remarkable successes by the Current Administration and incredible men and women of the United States customs and Border Protection. Im honored to speak on behalf of the men and women of cbp from the frontlines of her nations borders defending the rule of law maintaining integrity of the immigration system and protecting the safety and security of this great country. All play Critical Role in ensuring our Economic Security as well. As you recall earlier this year we sounded the alarm at the border crisis and asked congress to act to fix the loopholes and a broken immigration system and close thehe gaps. Unfortunately not a single piece of meaningful legislation has been brought forward to address this crisis and as a result the crisis has worsened. Although we have made great progress im here today to respectfully remind this community and the American People that there are there continues to be a humanitarian crisis and importantly a National Security crisis. In fy2019 cbp enforcement action succeeded 1. 1 million nationwide , an increase off 68 over the Previous Year. The totalal number of apprehensions along the southwest border exceeded 978 thousand and 88 increase over the Previous Year and apprehensions. Border patrol apprehended more than 473 thousand family units representing the highest number for any year on record. The number of unaccompanied children encounter between the ports totaled more than 76,000, 52 higher than any other year. There is no immigration system in the world decide to handle this massive migration number, not even the United States. Challenging still are the demographics of those illegally entering our southern border. Add in 201971 of all southwest border after hedges came from the northern countries. The vast majority being families and on the company children. They are being pulled in the United States that the loopholes they know to grab a kid thats your passport into the United States and it was working. Smuggling organizations and cartel exploit them in lifethreatening for situations and treatin them as nothing more than a moneymaking commodity, a multibilliondollar scheme. The impact was real. As the chairman stated in may of this year we saw the highest number more than 140,000 apprehensions in a single month. Cbp had to divert resources away from their missioncritical duties to care for children and familiesil at times up to 50 of Border Patrol resources were pulled off the line to care for families and children leaving borders increasingly vulnerable. Meanwhile the cartel and smuggling organizations are exploiting those Law Enforcement gaps increasing the threat to our National Security or less or more than 150,000 migrants who illegally entered the United States got away. The Transnational Criminal Organizations have not only exploited migrants themselves the flood of united, states wih illicit narcotics making their way into every town and city and state in this great nation. Make no mistake many of the methamphetamines in your town or city came from the southwest border. Absent congressional action the administration has to take action. On engagement with the government ntof mexico. We have initiated in the network up initiative policies and regulations to stem the flow of migration. Together we are and we have seen incredible success. The last four months since fiscal year 2019 received a 65 reduction in the operations of september marking the lowest number during an entire year to just over 52,000. By midyear cbp was holding almost 20,000 detainees in custody. Now we are averaging less than 3500 a day. The height of the crisis ebp apprehensions at times exceeded 5000 single day and now we are averaging less than 1400. We have all but ended catch and release. Our success in addressing humanitarian crisis should not overshadow the National Security crisis. Last years cbp officers and Border Patrol agency seized more than 750,000 pounds of illicit narcotics. Cbps air Marine Operation contributed an additional 285,000 pounds of cocaine seizures for hard narcotics fentanylth heroin cocaine and methamphetamine on crease. Last year there were more than 60,000 Overdose Deaths in the United States. We no methampheta