DHS Bureaucrat Watch List

TARGETS

Jessica Mufarreh (Rihma)

Salary:
$183,500
Grade:
GS-15
DHS Headquarters
Senior Policy Advisor for Immigration (White House Detailee) -- DHS

Jessica Mufarreh's

Partisan Political Activities

Jessica Mufarreh's

Notable Financial Relationships

Jessica Mufarreh's

Notable Prior Employment History

Quoted in Article Decrying Post-9/11 So-Called “Racial Profiling”

Ms. Mufarreh participated in a 2003 forum on post 9/11policy priorities.  In this forum, Ms. Mufarreh made a statement to the effect that she is more concerned with so-called racial profiling than public safety. Given that immigration enforcement is a national security issue, this calls into question Ms. Mufarreh’s priorities.


Greenberger believes the emphasis of homeland security should be on providing funding for traditional law enforcement operations, right down to the state and local police level, rather than on detaining enemy combatants or carrying out racial profiling against immigrants from Arab countries.
On the latter point, he has the strong support of a third-year law student, Jessica Mufarreh, who has studied the post-Sept. 11 policies of the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (formerly known as the Immigration and Nationalization Service) and will be presenting her findings at today's seminar.
Mufarreh said yesterday she firmly believes that the National Security Entry-Exit Registration System, which requires immigrants from 25 countries to register with the agency each year, is unnecessarily discriminatory towards people from those places, many of which are Arab nations.
"The problem with focusing on these people is that we are creating a false sense of security," said Mufarreh, who was born in the United States but is of Palestinian descent. "We fail to realize that terrorists are often smarter than we would like them to be."
A result of this kind of profiling is that immigration or law enforcement officials may concentrate too much on the race or nationality of a suspect, allowing a terrorist who does not fit that description to passthrough, she said.

(Source)

These comments call into question Mufarreh’s national security priorities if she is willing to put political correctness ahead of national security.

Member of the Department of Homeland Security’s White House Detail

Ms. Mufarreh is a member of the White House detail for the Department of Homeland Security.  A plum spot on the White House immigration team only goes to bureaucrats who are Biden team players. The appointment to a position at the White House shows that Ms. Mufarreh is on board with the Biden administration’s open borders agenda.

To serve in such a position indicates views that would be out of place in a conservative administration. Her role facilitated the introduction of policies that have not only transformed border management in a radical way but have also compromised safety, posing a direct threat to our safety.

First, Mufarreh and other advisors, continually deferred the issue, expecting Congress to resolve the mass migration crisis through lenient and pro-asylum immigration laws. They claimed to lack the executive power to take action, but that assertion was misleading; Trump successfully addressed these challenges during his administration.

“President Biden has called on Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform since his first day in office. As a result of Congress’ failure to enact the reform, the Administration has been using the limited tools it has available to secure the border and build a safe, orderly, and humane immigration system while leading the largest expansion of lawful pathways for immigration in decades. We also urge passage of fully funded emergency appropriations, including the supplemental funding request for border security, as requested by the President this summer. The $4 billion supplemental funding requested for DHS addresses immediate needs of the Department to safely and humanely manage the Southwest Border and to continue implementing our immigration laws through the expansion of lawful pathways and enforcing consequences for those who do not use them. DHS has also allocated more than $770 million to 69 partner organizations in Fiscal Year 2023 to support communities receiving migrants, in both the Southwest Border region and the interior, through the Shelter and Services Program (SSP) and the Emergency Food and Shelter Program – Humanitarian Awards (EFSP-H).”

(Source)

Second, Biden’s advisors pushed to end Title 42, which under Trump was successful and effective because it allowed for quick expulsions of migrants without the usual asylum processing, reduced detention time, and decreased border crossings. The Biden administration's decision to end Title 42, which was led by the immigration team in the White House, was a reckless move that exacerbated the ongoing border crisis. By removing this, the Biden Administration severely handicapped Border Patrol agents' ability to quickly expel unauthorized entrants, leading to overcrowded detention facilities and increased strain on local resources.

“On Thursday, the Biden administration lifted title 42, a pandemic-era policy that shut down virtually all avenues for migrants to seek asylum in the US. In March of 2020 then president Trump invoked the rule as a public health emergency measure, allowing for the quick expulsion of migrant sat the border. Now that Title 42 has been lifted, tens of thousands of migrants fleeing poverty, violence and political instability will be subjected to decades-old immigration laws that will allow them to stay in the country while their cases make their way through immigration court. But the process could cause a bottleneck at the border and strain federal, state and local government resources.”

(Source)

Third, White House immigration advisors guided the Biden Administration to allow illegal Venezuelan migrants awaiting asylum to work in the USA "legally" for 18 months. This decision gave jobs to migrants before citizens, without proper vetting, instead of following the law and deporting them.

The Biden administration said late Wednesday that it would allow hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans already in the United States to live and work legally in the country for 18 months.
The decision followed intense advocacy by top New York Democrats, including Gov. Kathy Hochul, Mayor Eric Adams and party leaders in Congress. It will affect about 472,000 Venezuelans who arrived in the country before July 31, temporarily protecting them from removal and waiving a monthslong waiting period for them to seek employment authorization.

(Source)

In a joint statement, Senator Chuck Schumer and Representative Hakeem Jeffries of New York, the top Democrats in the Senate and House, said that the Homeland Security Department had estimated that roughly half the migrants currently living in New York are Venezuelans who would be affected by the decision. They called it a “welcome step forward.”
“As a result of this decision, immigrants will be temporarily allowed to work, fill needed jobs and support their families while awaiting an asylum determination,” they wrote. “The decision will also substantially reduce the cost to New York taxpayers with respect to the sheltering of asylum seekers.”

(Source)

In conclusion, Mufarreh's role in the Biden-Harris administration was pivotal in orchestrating what has become a border policy debacle. Her contribution to this administration's strategy has effectively dismantled border security, ushering in an era of open borders that stands as the most insecure in our nation's history.

Published Article on the “Occupation” of “Palestine”

In 2003, Ms. Mufarreh’s name appears as a co-author on thebyline for an article titled “PALESTINE: THE EFFECTS OF THE OCCUPATION.”  Notably, this article was published by the ADCTimes of the Arab American Anti-Discrimination Committee.

In what is ostensibly a straight news article, Ms. Mufarreh refers to the Israeli military as “hostile and abusive.”  She calls Judea and Samaria “occupied Palestinian territories.”  She also describes agitation for a Palestinian state as “motivational words.”


On Saturday, June 14, Catherine Cook, Oussama Kanaan, Father Amjad Sabbara, and Christine Shahin-Wood joined Amjad Atallah to discuss the effects of the Israeli occupation on the Palestinian people. Each panelist discussed a distinctive aspect of the ramifications of living under the rule of a hostile and abusive foreign army.
The moderator, Amjad Atallah, a legal advisor for the Palestinian government, began by discussing his own personal experiences while based in the occupied Palestinian territories during the ongoing secondIntifada, whichstarted in September 2000, and then in Washington, D.C. during the September 11attacks. He reflected on the irony of having been present in both societiesduring the times of greatest crisis.
Father Amjad Sabarra, pastor of the Church of Nativity inBethelehem,focused on the effects of occupation on the Christian population of Bethlehem.He explained that 60% of Bethlehem's population is currently unemployed becauseof Israeli-imposed curfews and incursions. Such problems have caused more thanone thousand people to leave Bethlehem in just the past two years. FatherSabarra further explained that the growing number of people leaving has addedto an even larger problem of loss of identity among the Palestinian people oBthlehem. He concluded by stressing the importance of the Parish's role inencouraging Palestinians, both Christians and Muslims, to remain in Palestine,and live in dignity together despite the hardships they face because of theIsraeli occupation.
An environmentalist by profession, Christine Shahin-Wood,provided anoften-overlooked aspect of the effects of occupation. Although acknowledgingthat the environment is not often considered an "Arab issue," sheexplainedthat the environment is both directly and indirectly related to occupation. Shelisted direct impacts such as the effects of landmines and bombs on theterrain, animals and humans. Indirect impact includes the depletion ofresources and the overall destruction of the ecosystem. Shahin-Wood explainedthe importance of recognizing these devastating effects on the environment inorder to generate a broader awareness of the severe implications of occupation,and to create a progressive movement to swiftly end the hazardous environmental effects of occupation.
Providing a humanitarian perspective, Catherine Cook, of the Middle East Report and Information Project (MERIP) and formerly of the Palestine section of Defense for Children International, discussed the systematically imposed hardships facing children under occupation. Palestinian children, who account for 53% of the population, are often dehumanized and victimized by the occupation and the Israeli military which enforces its. As a result, many children suffer psychological and physical damage and/or disorders. She added that living under occupation forces Palestinian children into adult-like roles, robs them of their childhood, and impedes their chances for a successful and healthy future.
Ousama Kanaan, Alternate Executive Director for the International Monetary Fund (IMF), spoke about the economic effects of Israeli occupation. According to Kanaan, economic growth is virtually impossible under occupation. Even though the Palestinian Authority has entered another year of exceptional difficulties under occupation, Kanaan notes that some economic growth has occurred. For instance, steps have been taken to ensure maximum transparency of the Palestinian budget accounts including the completion of the process of consolidating all Palestinian Authority revenue into a single treasury account and various other reforms in order to ensure a more prosperous economy. He added that, given the chance and with adequate resources, the Palestinian Authority may have the potential to generate a positive level of growth in the economy.
Atallah concluded the panel discussion with motivational words advising both the audience and panelists to remain committed to the creation of a Palestine state, as the only way to achieve a just and lasting peace.

Article copyright American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee

(Source)

For Ms. Mufarreh to speak in such a biased manner about a conflict involving a close American ally calls into question her ability to faithfully execute the duties of the Department of Homeland Security.