The House Oversight Committee has sent a letter to soon-to-be-retired Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and embattled Attorney General Eric Holder regarding the dramatic upswing in asylum requests by those crossing the border. Over the past few months, asylum requests have increased an incredible 400 percent, with immigrants claiming fear of drug lords in Mexico.
Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) has asked Napolitano and Holder to clarify whether such immigrants are being told to use asylum language, since so many have been using the same phrase – “credible fear” of persecution – when attempting to cross. “I am writing to request information related to the roles of the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice in the asylum program,” Chaffetz wrote, before asking for information on cases in which witnesses made “false assertions.” The letter sets a September 9 deadline for such information.