People coming into the United States from the hurricane-torn Bahamas without travel documents will undergo review through a "case-by-case" basis, but they won't be denied entry solely for not having travel documents, acting Customs and Border Patrol Chief Mark Morgan said Tuesday.
However, Morgan told CNN's "New Day" the United States does not want to see people coming from the islands in a "mass exodus," and he agreed with President Donald Trump that sometimes "bad people" will try to use a crisis situation to enter the country illegally.
"What I will say is history has shown us that there are bad people that do take advantage of that," Morgan said. "Have we seen any of that right now? No. In fact, the majority of people have actually had some form of [a] travel document."
There have been conflicting statements concerning what will happen if refugees fleeing the hurricane damages come into the country without documentation. Morgan had also said on Monday that people from the Bahamas can enter the United States without travel documents, but Trump said "proper documentation" was needed to keep "very bad people out."
Morgan on Tuesday said he hasn't seen a large number of refugees trying to enter the country. Over the weekend, however, more than 100 people trying to leave the islands were kicked off a ferry heading to Florida after the boat's operator, blaming U.S. red tape, said only people with valid U.S. visas would be allowed to proceed.
Morgan said the ferry operator took the action because it would have taken time to process people without documents.
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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