>>> KEN CUCCINELLI IS THE ACTOR 15% or more.
>>> KEN CUCCINELLI IS THE ACTOR DIRECTOR OF U.S. CITIZENSHIP AND
IMMIGRATION SERVICES AND BEEN ON
THE JOB SINCE JUNE 10th.
HE’S BEEN HERE LESS THAN A MONTH
BUT IT’S PROBABLY ONE OF THE
MOST BUSIEST JOBS AROUND THERE.
YOU’RE THE ACTING DIRECTOR.
WHAT WILL MAKE YOU THE PERMANENT
DIRECTOR?
DIRECTOR? >> WELL, TO BE THE PERMANENT
DIRECTOR IN THIS POSITION THE
PRESIDENT WOULD HAVE TO SUBMIT
ME TO A CONFIRMATION TO THE
SENATE.
SENATE. GO THROUGH THE SENATE AND
OBVIOUSLY GET A FAVORABLE
RESULT.
RESULT. >> IS HE WATCHING?
IS THIS PART OF THE INTERVIEW?
>> I DON’T KNOW.
YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT THE
PRESIDENT MAY BE WATCHING BUT
WE’LL LEAVE HERE BECAUSE WE WILL
ALL KNOW BECAUSE WE WILL SEE IT
ON TWITTER.
ON TWITTER. >> LET’S TALK ABOUT THE ASYLUM
PROCESS.
PROCESS. YOU HAD SAID CONGRESS NEEDS TO
END INCENTIVES AND LOOPHOLES IN
OUR CURRENT SYSTEM.
ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT
IMMIGRATION OR ASYLUM OR BOTH?
AND WHAT SPECIFICALLY DOES
CONGRESS NEED TO END?
YOU’RE SUGGESTING THERE’S AN
INCENTIVE OTHER THAN THE
ECONOMIC ONES WE JUST DISCUSSED
FOR PEOPLE TO TRY TO GET INTO
THE COUNTRY.
THE COUNTRY. >> THAT’S A WELL ASKED QUESTION.
THERE ARE ECONOMIC INCENTIVES.
WE ARE DEALING WITH SOME OF
THOSE UNDER TURNING OUR
ATTENTION TO PUBLIC CHARGE RULE
AS IT’S CALLED, WHICH IS REALLY
ESSENTIALLY TRYING TO KEEP
SPONSORED OF ALIENS COMING IN
RESPONSIBLE WHEN THEY GO ON
WELFARE AND START TO DRAW DOWN
BENEFITS FROM THE TAXPAYERS.
THAT’S ONE ITEM THAT YOU SEE
ADVANCING, BOTH BASED ON THE
PRESIDENT’S MEMO IN MAY AND
THERE’S A LARGE REGULATION GOING
THROUGH THE PROCESS, WHICH
HOPEFULLY WILL BE DONE SOME TIME
IN THE SUMMER OR FALL.
THAT ADDRESSES SOME OF THOSE.
BUT ON THE ASYLUM SIDE, WE HAVE
AN ARRANGEMENT WITH CREDIBLE
FEAR, WHICH THIS INITIAL LOW
STANDARD.
STANDARD. NOT THE FINAL ONE.
NOT THE FINAL ACTUAL FEAR
STANDARD BUT THE INITIAL ONE
THAT IS KEEPING PEOPLE IN THE
PIPELINE WHERE THEY’RE NOT GOING
TO SUCCEED ON THE OTHER END.
THAT REALLY WE NEED CONGRESS TO
FIX THAT.
FIX THAT. THAT IS THE IDEA WAY TO APPROACH
ANY OF THESE CHALLENGES.
THAT IS A BIG FEATURE.
>> WHAT DOES SUCCESS LOOK LIKE
FOR YOU, THE STANDARD YOU
PRESENT YOURSELF IS HIGHER SO
MORE PEOPLE GET TURNED AWAY AT
THE FRONT END BECAUSE A LOT OF
PEOPLE GET TURNED AWAY IN THE
SECOND STAGE.
SECOND STAGE. IT IS UNDER 10% FROM THE
NORTHERN TRIANGLE COUNTRIES.
SO I THINK WE CAN ARGUE THAT
SYSTEM FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE
WORKS.
WORKS. FEWER THAN 10% GAIN ASYLUM.
>> ULTIMATELY.
>> ULTIMATELY. THE PROBLEM IS FROM HERE TO
THERE.
THERE. >> THE PROBLEM THAT HAS TO BE
CHANGED IS THE FRONT END, EMAIL
YOU SENT TO YOUR EMPLOYEES TO
SAY WE WANT YOU TO BE TOUGHER AT
THE FRONT END SO PEOPLE ARE NOT
GETTING IN THE PIPELINE THAT
WILL BE BOOTED OUT ON THE BACK
END, IS THAT THE ARGUMENT YOU’RE
MAKING?
MAKING? >> THE STANDARD IS THE STANDARD.
WOULD I NOT CHARACTERIZE WHAT I
SAID AS BEING TOUGHER.
I’M STILL IN IN MY ROLE AND
COMMUNICATING WITH MY EMPLOYEES.
>> ARE THE LANGUAGE YOU USED IS
UPHOLD OUR NATION’S LAWS BY ONLY
MAKING POSITIVE AND CREDIBLE
FEAR AND DETERMINATION AND
PROBABILITY OF SUCCESS.
>> THAT’S RIGHT.
AND WHAT CONGRESS CAN HELP US
WEAPON IS THIS FIND WHAT AMOUNTS
TO A MORE ACCURATE FIRST FILTER.
ANYBODY WHO’S GOT CREDIBLE FEAR
WE DON’T WANT TO SCREEN OUT OF
THE PROCESS, BUT WE DO WANT TO
SCREEN OUT THE ONES WHO ARE
NEVER REALLY GOING TO MAKE THE
CASE BEFORE A JUDGE AND ARE NOT
IN A POSITION TO DO THAT.
BECAUSE THAT BATCH OF PEOPLE --
LET’S JUST PICK A NUMBER.
LET’S SAY THE NUMBER GOES FROM
77% 250% AND YET THE FINAL
NUMBER STAYS AROUND 10.
THAT 25% OF PEOPLE ARE NO LONGER
CLOGGING A YEAR’S LONG PIPELINE.
IN MY VIEW, WE HAVE A 23,500
CASE BACK LOG THAT WE’RE
ATTACKING WHILE KEEPING IT FROM
RISING.
RISING. AND WE KEPT IT FLAT, EVEN WITH
THE CRISIS AT THE SOUTHERN
BORDER, WE KEPT THAT BACK LOG
FROM GROWING AND NOW WE’RE ALSO
TRYING TO -- BURNING THE CANDLE
AT BOTH ENDS -- TRY TO REDUCE
THAT BACKLOG WHILE CONTINUING TO
SUPPORT OUR PARTNERS AT THE
BORDER AND PROCESS FAIRLY ALL OF
THE MIGRANTS THAT COME TO THE
BORDER.
BORDER. >> YOU’VE COME FROM VIRGINIA
WHERE IMMIGRATION HAS BEEN A
REMARKABLE BOON.
REMARKABLE BOON. >> I THINK YOU CAN FIND ANY
STATE IN THE COUNTRY.
>> YES, YES.
LET’S LISTEN TO OUR BORDER APRIL
REHEPGS.
REHEPGS. OVER THE LAST YEAR THERE’S BEEN
A SURGE, IN MAY THE NUMBERS ARE
QUITE REMARKABLE.
QUITE REMARKABLE. THIS DOES EXPAND TO SOME OF THE
POLICY CHANGES WE SAW.
IN MAY, WE HAD 137,000 PEOPLE.
THERE ARE MORE THAN 700,000
PEOPLE OVERSTAYING VISAS AND BY
THE WAY, THESE OVERSTAYS TEND TO
BE A MUCH BILLER PROBLEM THAN --
THIS IS 2017, 7,000 PEOPLE
OVERSTAYED THEIR VISA.
HOW DO YOU SOLVE THAT PROBLEM?
>> IF YOU SOLVE THAT
HISTORICALLY IT’S THE NUMBERS
COMING ACROSS THE BORDER.
NOW THE NUMBERS WE SEE NOW ARE
HISTORIC IN THE LAST DECADE AND
THE MAY NUMBERS, WHAT’S SO
NOTABLE IS ABOUT 72% OF THOSE
PEOPLE WERE NOT ADULT MALES,
SINGLE ADULT MALES.
THEY WERE FAMILIES AND
UNACCOMPANIED CHILDREN.
UNACCOMPANIED CHILDREN. THAT IS A PHENOMENALLY
COMPLICATING FACTOR.
COMPLICATING FACTOR. >> UT BUT THE NUMBERS ARE STILL
DWARFED BY THE MEMBER ON VISA
OVERSAYS.
OVERSAYS. >> WE DON’T GET A NUMBER ON VISA
OVERSTAYS.
OVERSTAYS. >> YOU GET ZERO, NOBODY TELLS
YOU THEY ARE OVER STAYING THEIR
VISA.
VISA. YOU WOULD MOVE THEM OUT.
>> THAT’S RIGHT.
>> WORRYING ABOUT IMMIGRATION
POLICY IN GENERAL -- AND IF WE
HAD MORE TIME WE WOULD TALK
IMMIGRATION POLICY ENGINEERS
WOULD BE BRINGING.
BUT IF ONE WERE WORRIED ABOUT
THAT, WHY THE ATTENTION ON THE
BORDER?
BORDER? IT FEELS WEIRD.
IT FEELS LIKE WE’RE REALLY PREON
PIED WITH BROWN PEOPLE COMING IN
ON THE SOUTHERN BORDER.
IF YOU SAID WHAT’S THE HIERARCHY
YOU NEED TO SOLVE IT WOULD BE
YOUR VISA OVERSTAY PROGRAM.
>> THAT IS STILL NOT WHAT’S
SWAMPING THE BORDER PA TLOM.
IT’S NOT WHAT’S SWAMPING I.C.E.
>> I AGREE, BORDER PATROL.
>> LET ME FINISH.
I.C.E. IS TAKEN OUT OF THE
BUSINESS OF PURSUING VISA
OVERSTAYS.
OVERSTAYS. I DON’T MEAN COMPLETELY BUT
BECAUSE OF WHAT THEY’RE
CONTENDING WITH BACKING UP CPC
ON THE BORDER, THEY’RE THE
SECOND STAGE OF THE PIPELINE IN
DETENTION.
DETENTION. AND THEY WANTED TO NOT HAVE
DETENTION.
DETENTION. IT WAS CATCH AND RETURN.
NOW THEY’RE RETAINING AND CAN’T
MOVE THEM ON TO I.C.E. BECAUSE
I.C.E. FACILITIES ARE
OVERBOOKED.
OVERBOOKED. THOSE FOLKS ARE SWAMPED WITH THE
SAME ORDER PROBLEM AND CANNOT IN
THE SAME NUMBERS PURSUE VISA
OVERSTAYS.
OVERSTAYS. YOU ARE NOT NUMBERS ABOUTWRONG A
NUMBERS.
NUMBERS. I WILL SAY FOR VISA OVERSTAYS,
ALL OF THOSE PEOPLE HAD AT LEAST
ONE VETTING, WHATEVER IT MAY
HAVE BEEN, TO GET AN INITIAL
VISA.
VISA. >> SORT OF.
NOT REALLY, RIGHT?
IF YOU’RE A PASSPORT AND COME
INTO THE UNITED STATES,
CANADIANS ARE THE BIGGEST
PROBLEM.
PROBLEM. NO CANADIAN NEEDS VETTING TO
COME INTO THE UNITED STATES.
>> FOR INSTANCE, I WAS IN EL
PASO AND THERE’S A LOT OF --
THERE ARE TWO COMMUNITIES ON
BOTH SIDES OF THE BORDER.
THEY SPEND TIME TOGETHER.
GO BACK AND FORTH.
A HUGE TRUNK OF THE DAILY
TRAFFIC IS SIXLY TRAFFIC BETWEEN
THE THE COMMUNITIES BECAUSE
TOGETHER THEY ARE ONE BIGGER
COMMUNITY.
COMMUNITY. WE HAVE THE SAME THING ON THE
CANADIAN BORDER, ALL BACK AND
FORTH.
FORTH. WE HAVE REPERCUSSIONS WITH THE
CANADIANS AND THEY’RE EFFECTIVE.