The Wire - December 19, 2023

RR The Wire 2300Z December 19, 2023PRECEDENCE: ROUTINE RRDTG: 230019Z DEC 23ICOD: 220019Z DEC 23CONTROLS: Public ReleaseQQQQBLUF: U.S. CLOSES EAGLE PASS BORDER CROSSING, HALTING TRADE. -----BEGIN TEARLINE------Homefront-USA: The border crisis deepens following a surge of illegal immigrants being granted entry into the U.S. in Texas. The border crossings at Eagle Pass and in El Paso have been closed so that CBP agents can be allocated to process the tens of thousands of people in the latest surge. Union Pacific representatives have urged the re-opening of the Eagle Pass crossing, citing that 45% of all trade between US/Mexico crosses the border at this site. AC: This is not the first time that international trade has been affected by illegal immigration, as operations at various ports of entry have been closed at times in response to large groups of immigrants causing delays. However, this latest surge has required the reassignment of most CBP agents to assist in processing immigrants into the US, which has directly impacted rail logistics.-Analyst Comments-Following the situation at the southern US border, travelers have noted substantial numbers of illegal immigrants on domestic U.S. flights. In Texas, the TSA has emplaced special checkpoints at several airports that allow illegal immigrants to be processed through airport security without proper identification (using the documents provided by CBP instead of the documentation TSA normally accepts). Considering the recent revelations regarding the surveillance of J6 participants, and the use of federal Air Marshals to “hand out water bottles” to illegals at the border, the risks of air travel are likely higher throughout this holiday season. Though there are no specific threats perceivable via open sources, common sense would indicate that the sheer volume of undocumented persons being funneled through the border (and into secure spaces) does not bode well for national security.-----END TEARLINE-----Analyst: S2AEND REPORTNNNN