Republicans demand Biden halt vaccine mandates for Border Patrol amid migrant crisis

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FIRST ON FOX: A group of 62 House Republicans, led by Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-NY and Rep. Brian Babin, R-Texas, are warning President Biden that federal vaccine mandates could lead to the loss of thousands of Border Patrol agents – which would exacerbate the ongoing crisis at the southern border. 

The Republicans are urging Biden to immediately suspend the mandates.

"We have serious concerns about your vaccine mandate for Federal employees and how it will impact the already understaffed and overworked United States Border Patrol and our overall national security," the Republicans say in a letter obtained by Fox News.

ARIZONA SEEKS TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER TO STOP BIDEN VACCINE MANDATE

Biden announced measures in September that will require federal workers and private sector workers in businesses with more than 100 employees be vaccinated or take a COVID test weekly. It is expected to affect more than 100 million Americans, and has led to fears of staff shortages in multiple sectors.

"We've been patient but our patience is wearing thin and your refusal has cost all of us," Biden said from the White House, defending the measures. "This is not about freedom or personal choice. It's about protecting yourself and those around you."

More recently he has dismissed the arguments from those who oppose vaccine mandates on the basis of "freedom."

"I have the freedom to kill you with my COVID," Biden said last month, mocking what he sees as the attitude of mandate opponents. "No, I mean, come on, freedom."

Border Patrol agents on horseback. (Fox News/Bill Melugin)

In their letter to Biden, the lawmakers note the migrant surge -- which has seen more than 1.7 million migrant encounters in Fiscal Year 2021 -- which has led to additional deployments to the border to manage the crisis. 

That, they say, could be worsened by the vaccine mandate if thousands of Border Patrol agents lose or leave their jobs.

"Despite these staffing issues, thousands of Border Patrol agents are at risk of losing their jobs because of your ill-conceived policy," they argue. "This mandate is wholly incongruent with the principles of individual choice and medical freedom, puts families in our districts at risk of financial ruin, and threatens our national security by flooding our communities with undocumented, unvetted migrants." 

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They describe forcing mandates on Border Patrol agents at such a time, as "not only irresponsible, but is a dereliction of your duty as Commander-in-Chief."

"Sadly, while we have seen countless members of your own party malign our Border Patrol agents for years, punishing these agents for their personal medical choices would constitute a full-frontal assault on our border agents and further reinforce your utter abandonment of our southern border," they argue.

DESANTIS THREATENS TO SUE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION OVER VACCINE MANDATES

They call on Biden to "immediately" suspend vaccine mandates for Border Patrol "or any first responder tasked with securing our border and addressing the ongoing border crisis."

They also request the White House provide information on vaccination rates for Border Patrol agents -- as well as those who have natural immunity due to already having contracted COVID-19 -- and a determination of how the loss of significant numbers of agents would affect border security.

"Joe Biden’s Border Crisis is impacting all states, including the North Country," Stefanik said in a separate statement. "I have heard from several of my constituents who work to protect our Northern Border, but who have been displaced from their homes to work long hours to fight Joe Biden’s crisis on the Southern Border. Instead of rewarding them for their service, this Administration is threatening to terminate our Border Patrol agents who wish to make their own medical decisions. I am proud to stand with our Border Patrol agents, who work to secure our borders and keep our nation safe."

Babin, meanwhile, said that the southern border is "on a path to extinction" under the Biden administration.

"Biden’s top priority should be ending the border crisis, but instead, he’s threatening to terminate our already overwhelmed Border Patrol agents for their personal medical choices," he said. "This president would rather exacerbate the crisis, putting Americans and our national security at greater risk, than secure the border."

The letter received support from the National Border Patrol Council, who said agents are at "breaking point" as they faced a border crisis, vaccinate mandates and "demonization of agents by the far-left" for doing their jobs.

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"Border Patrol Agents are entrusted to protect our homeland from ever growing threats such as deadly narcotics, dangerous criminals and potential terrorists, yet these same Agents are not trusted by President Biden to make decisions about what goes into their bodies," he said, before noting the lack of vaccine requirements for migrants being released into the U.S. 

"Sadly, this irony comes in addition to the utter hypocrisy in President Biden’s mandate for Border Patrol Agents when the illegal border crossers we apprehend everyday are then released into communities across the country without a similar mandate."

The letter is the latest effort by Republicans to counteract the effects of the vaccine mandate. A number of Republicans states have sued in an effort to stop the mandates going into effect.