Washington, D.C. — Rep. Barry Moore (AL-02) joined a letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas in opposition to vaccine mandates for Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. The letter urges Secretary Mayorkas to consider alternatives to enforcing the vaccine mandate and work on retaining an already-limited Border Patrol workforce. “It is unthinkable that the Biden administration would push out hundreds of Border Patrol agents during the middle of the border crisis it created," said Moore. "These agents are at the frontline of keeping our borders secure and communities safe, and to punish them with unconstitutional vaccine mandates a year after hailing them as heroes during the early days of the pandemic would be criminal. Secretary Mayorkas must do the right thing and prioritize a secure border over oppressive vaccine mandates." Background: Under President Biden’s Executive Order 14043, federal employees who do not get vaccinated will be subject to termination as early as next month. The average hiring process for Border Patrol agents takes more than 400 days, followed by over 20 weeks of training at the Border Patrol Academy. With morale and recruitment rates already at an all-time low, the agency would be unable to fill vacancies expeditiously. Click HERE to see the letter. This effort was led by Congressman Tony Gonzales (TX-23). Also joining the letter was House GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (NY-21) and fellow House Republican Representatives Brian Babin (TX-36), Stephanie Bice (OK-05), Mike Bost (IL-12), Michael Burgess (TX-26), Kat Cammack (FL-03), Michael Cloud (TX-27), Ben Cline (VA-06), Andrew Clyde (GA-09), Rick Crawford (AR-01), Jeff Duncan (SC-03), Tom Emmer (MN-06), Pat Fallon (TX-04), Randy Feenstra (IA-04), Russ Fulcher (ID-01), Brett Guthrie (KY-02), Carlos Gimenez (FL-26), Lance Gooden (TX-05), Louie Gohmert (TX-01), Glenn Grothman (WI-06), Ashley Hinson (IA-01), Ronny Jackson (TX-13), Chris Jacobs (NY-27), Mike Kelly (PA-16), Debbie Lesko (AZ-08), Tracey Mann (KS-01), Brian Mast (FL-18), Lisa McClain (MI-10), Mariannette Miller-Meeks (IA-02), Blake Moore (UT-01), Markwayne Mullin (OK-02), Ralph Norman (SC-05), Greg Pence (IN-06), Scott Perry (PA-10), August Pfluger (TX-11), John Rutherford (FL-04), Michelle Steel (CA-48), Greg Steube (FL-17), Claudia Tenney (NY-22), William Timmons (SC-04), Beth Van Duyne (TX-24), and Randy Weber (TX-14). ### |
