In an effort to test their resources and bring the problem of an unprecedented number of undocumented immigrants to the White House, Texas Governor Greg Abbott has spent the last ten months bussing migrants who come in his state to communities that are largely governed by Democrats.
Democrats throughout the country condemned Abbott for the action, calling it a cynical political ploy that victimized the migrants, and charged the Republican governor with violating the law against human trafficking.
However, the decision to relocate tens of thousands of asylum seekers has brought President Joe Biden’s immigration policy into the public eye. Democratic mayors are now compelled to bring up the subject frequently since their social safety nets are at risk.
This month, New York City Mayor Eric Adams traveled to El Paso, Texas, where he claimed that the recent spike in immigration had led to a “national catastrophe” and asked the Biden administration to take immediate action to significantly reduce the country’s immigration levels.
In a statement on January 13, Adams declared, “We are reaching our breaking point.” We need support and assistance from our federal and state colleagues and look forward to working together to face this crisis head-on. “The lack of desperately needed federal immigration reform should not imply that this humanitarian disaster rests entirely on the shoulders of cities.
Pressure Mounts
Democrat-on-Democrat criticism, according to Republican strategist Matt Klink, not only draws attention to “a failing immigration system that is the responsibility of the federal government,” but also emphasizes the realities of border security today.
According to political consultant Jay Townsend, “an increasing number of well-known Democrats, including the mayor of New York, are now calling for a solution to the border issue. Even though some Democrats don’t want to debate it, border security needs to be a part of that conversation.
Abbott’s administration has spent tens of millions of dollars chartering more than 16,900 migrants up North since April of last year.
While Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot has requested the state of Illinois for $50 million to care for migrants arriving in her city, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser’s administration has spent more than $8 million in the previous four months to address the flood of migrants being transferred to the nation’s capital.
Other Reports, Migrant Crisis Letter
After being viewed by over 300,000 people, a video showing Texas Governor Greg Abbott sending President Joe Biden a letter requesting immediate action on the crisis at the southern border on Sunday has gone viral on social media.
Abbott can be seen shaking Biden’s hand and reaching inside his jacket to pull out a letter that he subsequently presented to the president in a tape of their meeting at the El Paso airport that was shown live by MSNBC and afterwards posted by a number of Twitter accounts on the social media site.
As the two converse for approximately a minute, Biden can be seen briefly examining the letter before folding it back and shaking Abbott’s hand once again.
Online viewers of the video criticized Abbott’s action as a “political gimmick,” with one noting that the Republican governor of Texas turned to the cameras “immediately after” giving Biden the letter. Similar accusations were leveled against the Texas governor last year when he used millions of state dollars to shuttle immigrants to Washington, D.C. & cities with a Democratic mayor.
Biden made his first trip to the border on Sunday since taking office in January 2021. It happened only days after the president unveiled new steps to address the recent spike in immigration at the border, which infuriated both proponents of immigrants and those calling for more stringent controls.
