Yesterday, just hours before adjourning for a five-week recess, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a two-fold plan to address the so-called "humanitarian crisis" along the U.S.-Mexico border, mainly to address the surge of thousands of unaccompanied minors arriving from Central America.

The House first passed a $694 million border-security plan, and then passed legislation to end Obama's deportation relief program for undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children, or the so-called "Dreamers act," which Republicans have cited as a draw for the surge. The fact that any bill was passed is a surprise, given that just a day earlier it had been shelved only to be revived hours later.

House Speaker Boehner stated that they "passed a responsible bill to address the humanitarian crisis at our southern border. But, Obama was quick to criticize and said that the Republicans appeared to have been more interested in checking a box before going on vacation than actually addressing the issue. He vowed to "act alone" while they are on vacation in order to make up for what he thinks is a failed bill. Obama had originally requested $3.7 billion dollars, and the House Border Bill (which still needs to pass the Senate) falls short of that request by upwards of 3 billion dollars, and includes changes to the 2008 trafficking law to speed up deportation of minors. The House bill also contemplates funding for deployment of the National Guard at the request of governors, which up until now has only been deployed by Governor Rick Perry of Texas, the state that has received the largest portion of the surge.

It is unlikely that either bill will pass the Senate, and even if it does the White House has threatened to veto it. The White House says and Senate democrats say that this Bill would affect a group of people who are completely unrelated to those arriving at the border as of late, by doing away with a 2012 directive from Obama to shield 700,000 young undocumented immigrants from deportation.

Meanwhile, according to the White House, the bill does not provide enough resources given that the federal agency has already run out of money to address the surge.

Complicating bipartisan collaboration, of course, is the upcoming midterm election, which makes politicians reluctant to vote in a way that may jeopardize their election bids. Politicians on the right don't want to be seen as soft as immigration, but at the same time don't want to do anything that may impact the latino vote. Also, they lament that they have been pulled into the crosshairs of what they believe to be a crisis that was instigated by this Administration's weak stance on immigration.

Amidst the crisis, Central American leaders have set their sights on doing whatever possible to reduce the exodus of migrants, but are calling on the U.S. to step up to the plate and take on what they claim is the country's share of responsibility.

A couple of weeks ago, during a visit to Washington, President Hernandez of Honduras stated that the U.S. has an enormous responsibility in this problem which is largely the result of narco-trafficking and the resultant violence and reduced opportunities that is leading to the migration. The U.S. plays a role given that it is the largest consumer of drugs.

During a recent trade delegation visit to Mexico, California Governor Jerry Brown stated that he will do whatever is in his power to shelter children arriving in the U.S. This comes as a Border Convoy initiated in Murrieta on August 1st plans to travel along the border to McAllen, Texas to "take a stand against the federal government" and "stop government-funded human trafficking," according to its website.

Meanwhile, Governor Brown believes that this is not a military problem, and that security would benefit more if the "U.S. directed a fraction of what it spends on the U.S. border security to addressing some of Central America's problems of violence and poverty."

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