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​Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas will make his third trip to the US border on Thursday — while neither President Biden nor his border point person, Vice President Kamala Harris, has made a single trip — according to a report.

During a stop in El Paso, Texas, Mayorkas will meet with immigration advocates, sheriffs and local law enforcement officials, and will meet with front-line DHS workers in McAllen, Texas, KGET in El Paso reported.

But while the trip will be his third visit to the border, Biden and Harris have yet to travel there.

Mayorkas and a bipartisan group of senators visited a detention center for unaccompanied children in El Paso on March 19.

On March 6, he led a delegation of administration officials — including policy adviser Susan Rice — to the border to tour facilities run by the Border Patrol and the Department of Health and Human Services in Donna and Carrizo Springs, Texas.


  A family crosses the Rio Grande into the US to surrender to the Border Patrol to request political asylum. David Peinado/NurPhoto/Shutterstock A family crosses the Rio Grande into the US to surrender to the Border Patrol to request political asylum. David Peinado/NurPhoto/Shutterstock

Mayorkas, who has refused to call the situation at the border a crisis, has since been taking a more hardline approach and even weighed the possibility of restarting wall construction to fill “gaps” after Biden rolled back former President Donald Trump’s barrier plan when he entered office in January.

Speaking to Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel last week, Mayorkas said Customs and Border Protection submitted a proposal for steps it wants to pursue.

“The president has communicated quite clearly his decision that the emergency that triggered the devotion of DOD funds to the construction of the border wall is ended,” the DHS secretary reportedly told the group, referring to the Department of Defense.


  Asylum-seeking migrant children from Central America were deported from El Paso, Texas, with their family. REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez Asylum-seeking migrant children from Central America were deported from El Paso, Texas, with their family. REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez

“But that leaves room to make decisions as the administration, as part of the administration, in particular areas of the wall that need renovation, particular projects that need to be finished,” he added, according to the Washington Times, which obtained notes of the meeting.

His visit to the border comes after Border Patrol agents detained ​groups totaling ​more than 200 migrants who illegally crossed the Rio Grande river into Texas on Tuesday.


  Migrants board a van at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church in McAllen, Texas. AP/Dario Lopez-Mills Migrants board a van at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church in McAllen, Texas. AP/Dario Lopez-Mills

Photos posted on Border Report show the mix of adults and children wrapped in Mylar blankets sitting in a field after being stopped, waiting to be loaded on DHS buses.

Border Patrol agents told the publication that smugglers give the migrants colored wristbands to track them.

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After being deported from El Paso, Texas, Ana Maria Moreno hugs her daughter inside a temporary shelter in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.
After being deported from El Paso, Texas, Ana Maria Moreno hugs her daughter inside a temporary shelter in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez
An asylum-seeking migrant child from Central America, is seen inside the El Buen Samaritano shelter in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.
An asylum-seeking migrant child from Central America, is seen inside the El Buen Samaritano shelter in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.REUTERS
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An asylum-seeking migrant girl from Central America waits in a temporary shelter in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico .
An asylum-seeking migrant girl from Central America waits in a temporary shelter in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico .REUTERS
Migrants that crossed into the United States in the Rio Grande Valley rest at the Instituto Nacional de Migracion after being expelled to Mexico.
Migrants that crossed into the United States in the Rio Grande Valley rest at the Instituto Nacional de Migracion after being expelled to Mexico.AFP via Getty Images
Migrant children from Central America, who were deported from the US with their mother, play inside the El Buen Samaritano shelter in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.
Migrant children from Central America, who were deported from the US with their mother, play inside the El Buen Samaritano shelter in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez
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Migrants that crossed into the United States in the Rio Grande Valley and were flown to El Paso, Texas are expelled to Mexico.
Migrants that crossed into the United States in the Rio Grande Valley and were flown to El Paso, Texas are expelled to Mexico.AFP via Getty Images
Asylum-seeking migrants from Central America walk towards Mexico at the Lerdo Stanton international border bridge.
Asylum-seeking migrants from Central America walk towards Mexico at the Lerdo Stanton international border bridge.REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez
An asylum-seeking migrant from Central America lies on a bed inside a temporary shelter in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.
An asylum-seeking migrant from Central America lies on a bed inside a temporary shelter in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez
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“It’s like a ticket to the carnival,” one agent said.

Another said the wristbands allow the migrants to try to cross the border multiple times.

“They can reuse it and keep trying to cross with it,” he said.

The wristbands were littered around the area where the migrants were held.

The agents said human traffickers, called “coyotes,” charge migrants up to $8,000 per person.

Most of them are traveling with young children because of the Biden administration’s policy not to return minors to their home countries.

The ​dramatic influx of illegal immigrants ​from Mexico and Central America ​heading to the US has reached a 15-year high and asylum seekers have flooded federal detention centers, forcing the Biden White House to open military bases and convention centers to house the growing numbers.​

The Border Patrol agents said apprehending large groups of migrants has become a daily occurrence in south Texas, which has seen a steady stream since January. ​

“They’re everywhere​. If you drive back there, you might hit someone​,” the agent said, pointing to an area of thick brush.

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Honduran children sit at Houston airport followng their family's release from a US government holding facility for illegal migrants seeking asylum in McAllen, Texas.
Honduran children sit at Houston airport followng their family’s release from a US government holding facility for illegal migrants seeking asylum in McAllen, Texas.ED JONES/AFP via Getty Images
A woman and her son from Honduras ride an escalator during a transfer at Houston airport with other central American families, following their release from a US government holding facility in McAllen, Texas.
A woman and her son from Honduras ride an escalator during a transfer at Houston airport with other central American families, following their release from a US government holding facility in McAllen, Texas.ED JONES/AFP via Getty Images
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A chid stands next to her family's belongings as they wait for transportation at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church in McAllen, Texas.
A migrant chid stands next to her family’s belongings as they wait for transportation at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church in McAllen, Texas.AP/Dario Lopez-Mills
A Honduran family walks through through LaGuardia airport following their release from a US government holding facility for illegal migrants seeking asylum in McAllen, Texas.
A Honduran family walks through through LaGuardia airport following their release from a US government holding facility for illegal migrants seeking asylum in McAllen, Texas.ED JONES/AFP via Getty Images
A migrant family boards a flight from Houston to New York, following their release from a US government holding facility for illegal migrants seeking asylum in McAllen, Texas.
A migrant family boards a flight from Houston to New York, following their release from a US government holding facility for illegal migrants seeking asylum in McAllen, Texas.AFP via Getty Images
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A migrant child from Guatemala waits in a departure lounge with his father at McAllen airport in McAllen, Texas.
A migrant child from Guatemala waits in a departure lounge with his father at McAllen airport in McAllen, Texas.ED JONES/AFP via Getty Images
A family from El Salvador sits in a car after arriving at LaGuardia airport in New York following their release from a US government holding facility for illegal migrants seeking asylum in McAllen, Texas.
A family from El Salvador sits in a car after arriving at LaGuardia airport in New York following their release from a US government holding facility for illegal migrants seeking asylum in McAllen, Texas.AFP via Getty Images
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The Border Patrol agents said the migrants are setting out ​on the perilous trek to the US to escape poverty, gang violence and the devastation left by two back-to-back hurricanes.

“We have been affected very much by the hurricanes and we want a normal life. We really have nothing. In Nicaragua, the schooling for children does not offer a good education. It is a country where life is not sure,” Cassie Escalante told the Border Report, as she held her 9-year-old daughter.

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