Detailing a range of measures to deal with a surge of illegal immigration by children, the Secretary of Homeland Security publicly tried on Thursday to persuade Central American families to not send their kids on a dangerous trip to America, making clear that those who enter the United States at this time are not going to get a ticket to citizenship in the USA.
"Those who cross our borders today illegally - including children - are not eligible for an earned path to citizenship," said Homeland Security chief Jeh Johnson, as he used a news conference to lay out a series of efforts being undertaken by the feds to house and care for kids who are coming mainly from Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Mexico.
"Those apprehended at our border are priorities for removal," said Johnson.
Federal officials say the surge has been dramatic since last October - that over 47,000 children under the age of 18 had apprehended along the border with Mexico since October 1.
Because of the surge in apprehensions along the border, the feds are housing hundreds and hundreds of immigrant children at federal and military facilities in California, Arizona, Texas and Oklahoma, and actively looking for more space because of the surge in illegal immigration by children.
Among the efforts being undertaken by the federal government:
+ The Coast Guard is loaning airliners to transport children to various federal shelters
+ Immigration and Customs Enforcement is also leasing two other charter aircraft to transport these kids to shelters
+ Health officials are giving every child a preliminary health screening after they are apprehended
+ The Red Cross and other groups are providing humanitarian needs to help care for the kids
+ The Department of Justice is loaning resources and immigration judges to more quickly process the children
+ The feds have stepped up their use of radio, television and print media to tell people in Central America that there is no quick path to citizenship for young people who are surging across the border in recent months
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