Border Patrol agent makes an arrest. Photo via Border Patrol.

By Steve Neavling

ticklethewire.com

Mexicans who cross illegally into the U.S. are being sent to Mexico City, Border Patrol said Tuesday, citing concerns about the spread of the coronavirus.

In the past, Mexicans caught crossing into the U.S. illegally were usually sent back to border cities.

The move comes on the same day that CDC extended its policy to end asylum at the border, The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

Mexicans who illegally cross into the U.S. will now be held until they are expatriated to Mexico City.

Border Patrol leaders said the change was in response to an increase in Mexicans trying to cross into the U.S. Some of those caught crossing the border were repeat offenders, Border Patrol said.

“The overarching goal of these repatriation flights is to reduce the spread of COVID-19 into the U.S. and reduce the strain on Mexico’s resources along the border,” Border Patrol said in a statement.

Kenneth “Chuck” Canterbury via Twitter.

By Steve Neavling

ticklethewire.com

President Trump formally withdrew his nomination of Kenneth “Chuck” Canterbury to lead the ATF on Tuesday amid opposition from Republicans.

Trump nominated Canterbury, the former national president of the National Fraternal Order of Police, in June 2019 to replace Thomas Brandon, who was retiring.

Trump notified Congress that he was withdrawing the nomination, The Hill reports.

The ATF has been without a permanent director since 2015.

During a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in July, Republicans expressed concerns that Canterbury wasn’t supportive enough of gun rights. A vote to confirm Canterbury in September was postponed.

The latest development is part of a long history of powerful gun rights groups like the NRA blocking confirmation of ATF directors out of fear they’ll be too aggressive about enforcing the nation’s gun laws.