Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) announced he is sending elements of the Florida National Guard and state law enforcement to U.S.-Mexico border to help the beleaguered state of Texas in their fight against the ongoing crisis at the southern border.
Texas has been at the forefront of the crisis because the state makes up most of America's southern border with Mexico. Through Operation Lone Star, National Guardsmen and Highway Patrol troopers have intercepted attempted gotaways and seized large amounts of drugs that might have gotten past the overwhelmed Border Patrol. Operation Lone Star was critical in preventing a massive surge of illegal immigrants when Title 42 expired.
What Texas is missing, however, is the bill DeSantis recently signed into that takes effect this summer. The law states starting July 1, all public and private employers with 25 or more employees must use the federal government's E-verify system to ensure their workers are able to legally work in the United States.
Businesses who fail to do so can face fines and lose their business license.
A similar bill was introduced in the Texas statehouse, HB 602, earlier this year, but it only applies to political subdivisions. Texas did mandate businesses that are sexual in nature, such as strip clubs, to use E-verify to crack down on human trafficking centers using illegal immigrant labor, but it does not extend to all private businesses. HB 602 has been referred to State Affairs.
Interior enforcement at the state level is something all states can do while the federal government fails to do its job. The fact of the matter is, the illegal immigrant population has exploded because of the crisis, between the historic number of gotaways and asylum seekers who stop going through the court system. Waiting for the White House to change hands is not the best strategy when there are other options available besides sending personnel down to the border.
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