Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has followed through on his pledge to send illegal immigrants in Texas to the nation’s capital so President Biden will come face to face with the consequences of his policies.
Speaking at a press conference on border security last week, Abbott said he has sent 45 buses of people to Washington, D.C., so far.
“When you add a zero to that I think that Washington D.C. is going to soon find out they’re going to be dealing with the same consequences we’re dealing with,” Abbott said.
“Right now, Texas has the largest number of people crossing the border,” he continued. “One thing we have found with the implementation of Operation Lone Star is it has shifted cartel activity to New Mexico to Arizona, to California. … With every day that Texas has success, it may mean failure for some other state. That means failure for the United States of America.”
Abbott said the president needs to get serious about enforcing the law.
“Remember this: It was only a year and a half ago that we had the lowest amount of illegal immigration in decades,” Abbott said. “And then it only took a year and a half of the current administration to lead to the highest illegal immigration ever.”
The governor said he has never been in contact with border czar Kamala Harris and last spoke with Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas a year ago.
“They have no interest in talking to Texas or talking to leaders who are actually on the border,” he noted. “Remember Joe Biden himself has never even been to the border.”
“This is getting out of control”: The mayor of Eagle Pass says the influx of illegal immigrants is draining first responder resources on their small town. He also encouraged Biden and Harris to visit the area to see the crisis firsthand. pic.twitter.com/Rxu0NumIAs
— Julio Rosas (@Julio_Rosas11) May 23, 2022
The Texas Republican initially made the pledge to send illegal immigrants by the busload to D.C. in response to the administration lifting Title 42, an emergency health order that gave immigration authorities the power to turn migrants at the border away.
In April, Abbott said President Biden "will be able to more immediately address the needs of the people that they are allowing to come across our border” when he’s confronted with them firsthand in the nation’s capital.
Earlier this month, a legal battle over Title 42 began after a federal judge blocked the administration from lifting the order.