From some smart guy:
“How is it that if you arrive at JFK Airport without a passport, you are sent back to your place of origin, whereas if you cross the Rio Grande River without a passport, you are not sent back?”
Because shut up, you rayciss Nazi.
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Because the guy at the airport probably ain’t here to mow your yard, fix tacos at your breakfast place, or work below minimum wage at whatever manual labor job you can mention. And/or vote democrat.
I don’t get it. Borders used to be guarded by soldiers. People not authorized to enter were turned around at gunpoint.
As Mexico descends into chaos, I think we’ll return to that state shortly.
Serious, no joke answer:
Because landing at an airport, for DHS purposes, you’re not actually “in” the country until you clear customs. Without a passport, you don’t clear customs, are technically not “in” the country and can be immediately thrown on a plane back to your last point of origin. Whether that country admits you isn’t the USA’s problem, because when you land in whatever airport you’re sent back to, you’re not “in” that country until you pass their customs process. Because of that, the USA can put you on a plane to anywhere, quite honestly, and the destination country can’t stop it.
When you cross the Rio Grande, you’re actually “in” the country. Once you make contact with DHS, you’re detained/arrested for illegal entry. Or, in the alternative, you’re “in” the country, but not “legally” and must be affirmatively deported through the legal process. They can’t just throw you on a bus back home without processing and confirming that they can return you to your last point of origin. That’s because as far as Mexico is concerned, the bus taking you back has to physically, and not technically, enter actual Mexican territory. And once the passengers are in the physical territory of Mexico, they’re “in” the country. But before the Mexicans will let the bus physically pass into Mexico, they have to confirm the passengers are legally being admitted to Mexico. Basically, without a “limbo” space like an airport, Mexico doesn’t have to admit the bus until all the procedural and treaty processes are complete.
TL;DR – Airplanes are a special case where you have space physically in the destination country that isn’t legally actually in the country for immigration purposes. Ships/Boats, too.
Another ?reason? is that they put you back on a plane from the same carrier who transported you in the first place; and since they failed to ascertain that you had a valid Passport/Visa, they have to provide that transport gratis (to the Gov’t.) under international transport agreements they are a party to.
Mexico (IIRC) refuses to accept non-Mexicans across its Northern Border, even though they acceded to the transit of those non-Mexicans across its Territory in attempting to get to the USA.