Washington Post: “The Biden administration’s attention along the Mexico border has been consumed for the past several weeks by the record numbers of migrant teenagers and children crossing into the United States without their parents, at a rate that far exceeds the government’s ability to care for them.”

“But as they race to add shelter capacity for these minors, Department of Homeland Security officials are privately warning about what they see as the next phase of a migration surge that could be the largest in two decades, driven by a much greater number of families.

“The Biden administration projects the number of unaccompanied children crossing the border could spiral from more than 16,000 this month to as many as 26,000 in September,” Axios reports.

Wall Street Journal: “The government estimates that about between 18,600 and 22,000 children could cross the border in April. For May, officials are estimating the figure could rise to roughly between 21,800 and 25,000. Border Patrol officials have said they expect taking more than 16,000 children into custody this month, a record for any month at the border since at least 2010, according to government data.”

CBS News: “Biden says he wants to ramp up expulsions of migrant families, but most are being allowed to stay.”

“If President Biden is grooming Vice President Kamala Harris to be his successor, he has a funny way of showing it,” The Week reports.

“Biden on Wednesday announced that Harris will be the administration’s point person on immigration issues amid a fresh round of public attention on a so-called ‘surge’ of migrants at the southern border of the United States.”

“Wednesday’s announcement creates a notable political hazard for Harris and her ambitions to one day win the White House. Immigration is one of the most notoriously sticky debates in American politics, a test for the vice president that offers more opportunities for failure than success.”

“Vice President Kamala Harris will be the White House’s point person on immigration issues at the nation’s southern border, President Joe Biden announced Wednesday, tasking her with stemming the rising tide of migrants, many of them unaccompanied children, arriving in the U.S.,” Politico reports.

Said Biden: “I can think of nobody who is better qualified to do this.”

NBC News: Biden transition officials say Trump officials delayed action on child migrant surge.

Playbook: “A well-positioned GOP source says to expect some ‘fireworks’ in the chamber today over immigration. Republicans will try to bring up a series of bills related to the border crisis — and Democrats more than likely will object.”

“Republican hopefuls around the country are emphasizing immigration in their initial campaign pitches for 2022 statewide GOP primaries, concluding that voters still loyal to former President Donald Trump’s agenda will embrace tough-on-borders candidates,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

Washington Post: “We looked at data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection to see whether there’s a ‘crisis’ — or even a ‘surge,’ as many news outlets have characterized it. We analyzed monthly CBP data from 2012 to now and found no crisis or surge that can be attributed to Biden administration policies.”

“Rather, the current increase in apprehensions fits a predictable pattern of seasonal changes in undocumented immigration combined with a backlog of demand because of 2020’s coronavirus border closure.”

Axios: “The data shows an average of just 13% of nearly 13,000 family members attempting to cross the U.S.-Mexico border were returned to Mexico between March 14 and March 21 using the public health order, which essentially says the U.S. can close the border to nonessential travel because of the coronavirus.”

“It’s a sign of how the administration is struggling to keep up with a migration surge, and has been recently hamstrung by Mexico’s inability to take in more families the U.S. otherwise would expel.”

ABC News: Biden administration releases video from inside crowded migrant detention facilities.

Washington Post: “Along with the existing struggle to combat the coronavirus, immigration has emerged as one of the administration’s most urgent challenges — seized on by Republicans as a political cudgel, posing risks to Democrats in the 2022 midterms and potentially undermining Biden’s governing agenda. The issue also threatens to overshadow the president’s recent political victories in passing a $1.9 trillion covid relief package and making rapid strides in vaccination efforts.”

“The situation at the border — which Biden and his advisers steadfastly refuse to call a crisis — is the result of an administration that was forewarned of the coming surge, yet still ill-prepared and lacking the capacity to deal with it.”

The Hill: Feds will start putting some migrant families in hotels.

Washington Post: “A new spike in the number of families and children crossing the Rio Grande into South Texas over the past several hours is forcing U.S. Customs and Border Protection to request airplanes that will allow the Biden administration to transport migrants to states near the Canadian border for processing.”

“Border officials requested the air support from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement because 1,000 members of families and unaccompanied minors crossed the Rio Grande on Friday morning, and border agents have another 1,000 migrants they have been unable to process since last night, the communications show.”

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) “introduced a bipartisan immigration bill 43 days ago. But if it came up on the Senate floor today, he wouldn’t support it,” Politico reports.

Said Graham: “God, no. I’m not in support of legalizing one person until you’re in control of the border.”

Associated Press: “Republicans still divided over former President Donald Trump’s legacy are seizing on his signature campaign issue, turning their focus to immigration as they try to regain the political upper hand.”

“Faced with President Joe Biden’s early popularity, good news about vaccinations, and Americans’ embrace of the COVID-19 relief bill Washington Republicans opposed, the GOP is leaning in on the highly charged issue amid a spike in border crossings. They hope immigration can unite the party heading into next year’s elections, when control of Congress is at stake.”

Axios: Swing voters worry about child migrant buildup.

“The way many Republicans describe it, President Biden has thrown open the border between Mexico and the United States so that anyone who wants to come into the country can do so, illegally or legally,” the Washington Post reports.

“But many of those who live along the border in Texas say that while there has been a dramatic increase in the number of migrants caught crossing illegally, the border itself has been heavily restricted for nearly a year because of the coronavirus pandemic.”

“The Biden administration is restricting the information Border Patrol agents and sector chiefs can share with the media as a surge of migrants tests the agency’s capacity at the southern border,” NBC News reports.

“Border Patrol officials have been told to deny all media requests for ‘ride-alongs’ with agents along the southern border; local press officers are instructed to send all information queries, even from local media, to the press office in Washington for approval; and those responsible for cultivating data about the number of migrants in custody have been reminded not to share the information with anyone to prevent leaks.”

New York Times: “The incomplete border wall, already one of the costliest megaprojects in United States history, with an estimated eventual price tag of more than $15 billion, is igniting tensions again as critics urge Mr. Biden to tear down parts of the wall and Republican leaders call on him to finish it.”

“The Biden administration suspended construction on the border wall on Jan. 20, the president’s first day in office, announcing a 60-day period during which officials are determining how to proceed.”

Wall Street Journal: “One would provide a path to citizenship for young immigrants, known as Dreamers, who came to the U.S. as children … The other would provide a path to citizenship for farmworkers in the country illegally.”

Playbook: “Both of these measures will pass, but the real debate behind the scenes is about Biden’s larger comprehensive overhaul, which is not getting a vote.”