Jewish Political Briefing: Friday, Dec. 26, 2025
By Donald H. Harrison in San Diego, California
U.S. Senators Adam Schiff (D-California) and Chris Murphy (D-Connecticut) have introduced legislation that, except under extraordinary circumstances, would confine Border Patrol law enforcement activities to 25 miles north of the international border with Mexico.
Schiff, in a press release, explained the motivation for the bill: “The administration has continued to engage in indiscriminate and large-scale immigration raids — fomenting fear in our communities. In California, the administration has targeted citizens, noncitizens, and children while conducting raids far from any external border. These actions have torn apart families and adversely impacted the workforce of important industries, including agriculture…”
Murphy stated, “Border Patrol has no business conducting regular operations hundreds of miles away from the border. Trump’s obsession with ripping families apart and militarizing our cities has resulted in untrained agents wreaking havoc in American communities and a border that’s less secure. Our bill frees Border Patrol agents to do the important jobs they were actually trained to do: working at or near the border line to keep our country safe.”
In a recent interview with Fox News host Maria Bartiromo, the nation’s border czar Tom Homan contradicted Murphy’s assertion that the border is less secure. “We got the most secure border in the history of this nation … and that’s based on real data,” he said. Illegal border crossings are down 95 percent, Homan added.
Named “The Keeping Our Agents o n the Line Act,” the legislation would:
–Clarify the zone of Border Patrol operation does not exceed 25 land miles (consistent with the existing statute).
–Recognize the critical work of the Border Patrol in emergencies such as the Uvalde school shooting, by providing exceptions to the Border Patrol zone where lives are in immediate or imminent danger. (In 2022, a gunman killed 19 elementary school students and two teachers in Uvalde, Texas.)
–Prohibit delegations of authority to the Border Patrol to ensure that agents can remain focused on their primary mission of ensuring a secure border; and
–Provide transparency in the form of public reports on data about various training and interactions with United States citizens and others.
In San Diego County, cities and communities located within 25 miles from the border include: Alpine, Barrio Logan, Bonita, Boulevard, Campo, Chula Vista, Dulzura, El Cajon Encanto, Imperial Beach, Jacumba Hot Springs, Jamul, La Mesa, La Presa, Lemon Grove, Logan Heights, National City, Otay Mesa, Paradise Hills, Pine Valley, Potrero, Rancho San Diego, San Diego (southern portions), San Ysidro, Santee, Shelltown, Skyline, Spring Valley, and the U.S. unincorporated town of Tecate.
In neighboring Imperial County, localities in which the Border Patrol would still be permitted to operate, are Andrade, Brawley, Calexico, El Centro, Heber, Holtville, Imperial, Niland, Seeley, Westmorland, and Winterhaven.
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Donald H. Harrison is publisher and editor of San Diego Jewish World