Liberal 2022 candidates come out against Biden's repeal of Title 42, slam admin for 'lack of a plan'

Democrats candidates in the midterm elections are joining in the criticism that the Biden administration doesn't have a OK plan to end enforcement of the federal law known as Title 42, used during the pandemic to migrants and COVID-19 out of the U.S.

Texas Democratic gubernatorial candidate Beto O'Rourke hit at the administration for what he considers failing to come up with a plan for border communities to deal with the expected surge in immigration by ending Title 42 enforcement.

"It does not make sense to end this until there is a real plan and the capacity in place to handle those and address those that come over, he told the Texas Tribune on Tuesday. "We have yet to hear a plan from the Biden administration to address the dynamic we will have on the border once Title 42 ends."

Federal officials say they expect the number of illegal migrants at the country's border to shoot up next month when the emergency order ends.

O'Rourke, a former House Democrat and presidential candidate, says he has spoken with border officials who are concerned that the health order will be terminated without a comprehensive plan in place to deal with the expected surge.

Department of Homeland Security Officials estimate that as many as 18,000 migrants could begin crossing the border every day once the order is terminated.

Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott has responded to Biden's plan to terminate Title 42 in late May by busing migrants apprehended at the Texas border to Washington, D.C.

The first busload arrived in the capital Wednesday morning.

Elsewhere in the country, other Democratic hopefuls are also wondering whether the administration will announce a detailed plan before ending Title 42.

"There's not a detailed plan in place so that we can keep asylum seekers and people in the country safe," Mandela Barnes, a Democratic Senate candidate in Wisconsin, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "I'd like to see Biden put forward a comprehensive plan that deals with an influx of asylum seekers before we lift Title 42."

Barnes says he "supports comprehensive immigration reform that treats people with dignity, with fairness, with humanity" but wants to "make sure that law enforcement agencies have the resources they need."

Said O'Rourke: "Everyone is legitimately concerned about the lack of a plan. We should hold the federal government accountable for doing its job, and they’re not doing that,"