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Formella, 27 AGs Demand Immigration Policy Fixes; Dems Call It Cynical Posturing

By Staff Report | October 10, 2023

Courtesy photo

Attorney General John Formella

CONCORD – Attorney General John M. Formella announced Tuesday that he is joining a coalition of 27 attorneys general in a legal filing demanding the federal government fix unlawful immigration policies and secure the border.

“The government’s current border security posture has resulted in more than seven million inadmissible immigrants surging across the border. To date the U.S. Department of Homeland Security continues to release inadmissible immigrants into the country. The coalition is demanding that DHS amend its unlawful policies to expressly prohibit the mass release of inadmissible immigrants into the U.S.,” Formella said in a news release.

The announcement was greeted by Ray Buckley, the chairman of the New Hampshire Democratic Party, with disdain.

“Formella’s decision to align himself with this case — which is being led by one of Florida’s top Trump surrogates — is political posturing at its most cynical. New Hampshire’s Democratic-led cities are among the safest in the nation. Period.

“The resources of (Formella’s) office would be better invested into existing cases of Republican fraud and corruption he is currently investigating,” Buckley said in an email.

Formella said, “We are seeing a national security and public safety crisis unfold right before our eyes, and it stems directly from the federal government’s inability to secure the U.S. border. We cannot stand idly by as our immigration policies allow deadly fentanyl to keep pouring into our communities and criminal organizations continue to prey on the vulnerable by smuggling them into our nation illegally.

“The time is now for the federal government to make fast and serious fixes to its border security strategies. The Biden Administration must immediately change course to preserve the safety and security of New Hampshire and our entire country,” Formella said.

The coalition of Attorneys General submitted a Petition for Rulemaking to amend the DHS’s catch-and-release policies, stating that the policies are blatantly unlawful and have real effects on the security of our country. The petition states: “As the court found in Florida, DHS’s mass release policies have been ‘akin to posting a flashing ‘Come In, We’re Open’ sign on the southern border’…In August 2023, Border Patrol released 100,585 aliens under § 1226(a).”

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