The city of Laredo, Texas, sued the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in an attempt to halt Border Patrol from busing in immigrants into the city who were apprehended in the Rio Grande Valley as the southwest border continues to see a historic surge in illegal immigration.
The Rio Grande Valley Sector has been one of the main locations for large numbers of families, unaccompanied minors, and runaways during the border crisis, straining Border Patrol resources and facilities. In the complaint, Laredo said Border Patrol has been sending up to six buses, totaling around 350 people, a day to their area so they can be released, according to MyRGV.
The lawsuit cites the fact not all of the migrants who are released to the general public are tested for COVID-19. Those who qualify to receive aid from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have been testing positive for COVID-19 at higher rates in recent weeks.
Due to the large increase in immigrants being brought to Laredo, the local NGOs' resources and funding are now starting to be stretched thin, resulting in the city helping financially.
"Although the increased influx of [immigrants] is clearly a federal issue, the federal government has made this a municipal problem to resolve on our own. As Laredo is an underserved medical community with limited resources, it simply cannot accommodate a surge in COVID-19 positives," the complaint said. "The City cannot accept any more buses of [immigrants] as the flood of [immigrants] has caused irreparable harm and injury to our community given little or no hospital availability."
Laredo's response to the border crisis is telling given it is predominantly in a Democrat heavy-area, which President Joe Biden won in the 2020 election, though Rep. Henery Cuellar (D) has been vocal in calling out the Biden administration's approach to the problem.