Ice now admits it released more than 2,000 illegal immigrants due to budget

Backpedaling, the Obama administration is now admitting that it released more than 2,000 undocumented immigrants from immigration jails because of budget contraints prompted by the

sequester. Earlier, the Associated Press ran a story citing the number, but officials from Immigration and Customs Enforcements said the number was actually in the hundreds. The 2,000 number

included routine ins and outs, ICE said in a statement disputing the AP report. But today, the director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, John Morton, told a congressional panel

the agency released 2,228 people from immigration detention centers across the country for "solely budgetary reasons." The AP adds: "After the administration had challenged

the AP's reporting, ICE said it didn't know how many people had been released for budget reasons but would review its records. "Morton, who testified with two other agency

officials, told lawmakers that the decision to release the immigrants was not discussed in advance with political appointees, including those in the White House and Homeland Security

Secretary Janet Napolitano. He said the pending automatic cuts known as sequestration was 'driving in the background.'" As we reported, Republican lawmakers criticized the

administration for the move. House Speaker John Boehner, a Republican from Ohio, said the release of immigrants was "outrageous." "Morton said that although the most serious

offender category can include people convicted of aggravated felonies, many of those released were facing financial crimes," the AP reports. "Those released include immigrants who

had faced multiple drunken driving offenses, misdemeanor crimes and traffic offenses, Morton said." Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.