Rep. Maria Salazar: Latino voters 'don't want open borders'

Florida Republican Rep. Maria Salazar told Just the News that Latino voters "don't want open borders" and the Biden Administration isn't adequately prepared for the anticipated influx of migrants arriving at the border after Title 42 gets lifted.

Title 42 was enforced during the COVID-19 pandemic to prevent certain categories of asylum seekers arriving at the border from entering the country and spreading the coronavirus.

"By ending Title 42, President Biden welcomes an influx of migrants to the U.S. that our system is not prepared to handle," Salazar told Just the News. "He has no plan to solve the issue at our southern border, and it's hitting my community — the Hispanic-American community — the hardest."

The widespread assumption that Hispanics are single-issue voters focused on untrammeled border-crossing is a misconception, she argues. "We Latinos don't want open borders — we want safety for our families, order at the border, and a growing economy," she said.

Border Patrol union chief Brandon Judd has warned that drug cartels will control the U.S. border once the Biden administration lifts Title 42 at the end of May.

Salazar, a Cuban American elected to Congress in 2020, urged Congress to pass the immigration reform bill she introduced in February.

"The GOP is listening and responding to the Hispanic community's concerns about inflation and economic growth," she said, "and I am proposing actual solutions to fix our broken immigration system and address the border crisis through my Dignity Act, a realistic Republican led solution to restore law and order in our immigration system and secure our border once and for all."

Recent polls show that Democrats risk alienating Latino voters, particularly over their handling of U.S. economy.

Salazar has said the Dignity Act would "secure our border, provide a dignified solution to immigrants in the United States, and support American workers."