The Biden Administration restricts information to the media about the situation at the border

By Julia Ainsley - NBC News

The administration chaired by Joe Biden is restricting the information that Border Patrol agents can share with the media, as a wave of immigrants tests the agency's capacity on the southern border, according to two former officials of the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

Officials noted that the restrictions are viewed as an unofficial "gag order"

and is often referred to in that way among employees.

The officials requested anonymity because they are not authorized to speak to the media on the matter.

Border Patrol officials must reject all requests from the media accompanying agents along the southern border, according to the new orders. 

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Local press officers should send all information inquiries, including from local media, to the press office in Washington for approval , and those responsible for collecting data on the number of migrants in custody have been reminded not to share the information with anyone to avoid leaks, according to officials.

Multiple news organizations have requested access or photos from inside overcrowded border processing facilities where unaccompanied migrant children are found.

The requests were denied

.

The new restrictions have been conveyed verbally, not through an official memo, according to officials.

The unofficial policy has prompted some agents at the border to post videos showing mass arrests and waves of migrants without permission from Washington, according to the sources cited.

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The CPB and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have not offered media visits to the newly opened processing facility in Donna, Texas, which has been reported to be above capacity with unaccompanied migrant children.

Some of the restrictions, particularly for in-person visits, are due to COVID-19 precautions, according to one of the officials.

But while the Donald Trump Administration allowed some border travel for journalists during the pandemic, there has not been "not a single one since January 20," the day Biden took office.

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A DHS spokesperson stated that the agency is following the standards established in 2014.

"In the federal government, certain employees are designated spokespersons for their respective agencies and public statements are scrutinized for accuracy.

This standard and process has been followed at DHS since the Department's inception and in all bipartisan administrations

. CBP continues. publicly providing the same monthly data on the same schedule since 2014, "the spokesperson explained.

Migrant asylum-seeking families take refuge at a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) processing center under the Anzalduas International Bridge after crossing the Rio Grande River into the United States from Mexico in Granjeno, Texas, on 6 March 2021.REUTERS / Adrees Latif

The Trump Administration's media strategy for DHS often focused on highlighting the dangers that migrants pose, sometimes inflating the risk.

Politically appointed public affairs officials under Trump's term lobbied local border sectors to publicize the arrests and bring national media organizations to the border to see agents in action.

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"Part of maintaining public trust is communicating regularly and frequently," recalled a former official.

Another official, who has served in the last three administrations, noted that the current climate for CBP staff is more similar to that of the Barack Obama administration.

"It was more restrictive under Obama than under Trump, when there was more autonomy for each region to speak to the media," he said.

With the change in tone of the Biden Administration, which has committed to a more humane system on the southern border, some border agents have posted videos without permission.

One of those videos was posted online over the weekend by the office of Congressman Henry Cuellar, D-Texas.

The images show dozens of migrants, including young children, being rafted across the Rio Grande.

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A spokeswoman for Cuéllar explained that the video was filmed in March but that "the congressman cannot say who gave him the video."

Two officials claimed it came from a border agent.

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Cuellar has previously criticized Biden for not visiting the border during the surge.

Another key piece of information is the number of unaccompanied children in Border Patrol custody.

Although historically the figure has been somewhat opaque, as it is sensitive to law enforcement, a congressional aide said the data has been more difficult to accumulate amid a crackdown on leaks.

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Speaking to reporters at the White House on March 1, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas pledged to be transparent with the media, citing another principle that he intends to adhere to during his tenure:

"Openness and transparency, and that includes the Fourth Estate, "

referring to the media.

Mayorkas was responding to a reporter who said he had been denied access to Border Patrol facilities and that the agency had cited sanitary restrictions due to the pandemic.

Mayorkas replied that he would investigate it to find out why he was denied access.

In a statement released Tuesday, Mayorkas said DHS is "on track to find more people on the southwest border than in the last 20 years."

The Biden Administration is in a difficult position when it comes to messages on immigration

.

On the one hand, he wants to show voters that he has a more humane approach, while on the other hand he doesn't want to encourage more undocumented immigrants to cross the border.

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Ambassador Roberta Jacobson, Biden's coordinator for the southern border, declared last week at the White House: "Sometimes it is difficult to convey both the hope for the future and the danger that it is now. And that is what we are trying to do. And I will agree that we are trying to walk and chew gum at the same time. "