Busing migrants, Title 42: What’s happening at the border?

Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas said Thursday the U.S. will continue to explore ways to stop Venezuelan migrants who seek to enter the country after a federal judge blocked Title 42 earlier this week.

Mayorkas told lawmakers Thursday that migration patterns have changed dramatically.

“When I was deputy secretary we were very concerned about migration from the Central American countries of El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras,” Mayorkas said. “We have encountered now, the highest level of encounters by Venezuelans, Cubans and Nicaraguans and that changed demographic makes the challenge even more acute because our diplomatic relations with these countries is obviously quite strained and we’re unable to remove as easily individuals from these countries of origin.”

The southern border was a hot topic leading up to last week’s midterm elections it continued to make headlines in the days that followed.

Here’s a summary of what happened this week:

Title 42 allowed U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agents to turn away migrants with the goal of preventing the spread of COVID-19.