Texas Gov. Greg Abbott slams Biden over migrant surge at the border


Texas Governor Greg Abbott slammed the Biden administration on Sunday saying that the situation on the southern border ‘will get worse’ and the president should reinstate Donald Trump’s ‘remain in Mexico’ policy.

Since President Biden entered office in late January, there has been a significant spike in the number of illegal immigrants who have crossed the border from Mexico.

The Border Patrol encountered 52,904 families along the Mexican border last month, up from 19,286 in February and 3,455 in March 2020.

The US Customs and Border Protection reported that there were more than 172,000 border stops total in March – a 20-year record.

Only about one in three families encountered last month was quickly expelled from the US under federal pandemic-related powers that deny people a chance to seek asylum.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott slammed the Biden administration on Sunday saying that the situation on the southern border ‘will get worse’ and the president should reinstate Donald Trump’s ‘remain in Mexico’ policy

Texas Governor Greg Abbott slammed the Biden administration on Sunday saying that the situation on the southern border ‘will get worse’ and the president should reinstate Donald Trump’s ‘remain in Mexico’ policy

The image above shows young children inside a pod at the Customs and Border Protection facility in the Rio Grande Valley town of Donna, Texas on March 30

The image above shows young children inside a pod at the Customs and Border Protection facility in the Rio Grande Valley town of Donna, Texas on March 30

Immigration authorities have been releasing families with children 6 and younger into the country while their cases are decided.

There are currently about 21,000 unaccompanied minors in the custody of the federal government.

Critics of the president said that his move to undo Trump’s immigration restrictions led to the migrant surge on the border.

After entering office, Biden vowed to roll back one of Trump’s most consequential policies to deter asylum-seekers from coming to the United States.

About 70,000 asylum-seekers were enrolled in the program officially called Migrant Protection Protocols since it was introduced in January 2019.

On Biden’s first day in office, the Homeland Security Department suspended the policy for new arrivals.

Since then, some asylum-seekers picked up at the border have been released in the US with notices to appear in court.

The Trump administration said the policy was critical to reversing a surge of asylum-seekers that peaked in 2019.

But the policy also exposed people to violence in Mexican border cities and made it extremely difficult for them to find lawyers and communicate with courts about their cases. 

DailyMail.com has sought comment from the White House in response to Abbott’s remarks.

Abbott told Fox News on Sunday: ‘This problem will continue to get worse because of the policies that have been adopted by the Biden administration.’

The Texas governor said: ‘What the president could do is to immediately put back in place the ‘remain in Mexico’ protocols that were established in the prior administration.’

‘He could continue to build the wall along the border in south Texas. He could send a stronger message that these people should not be coming here.’

Abbott said that the situation on the border was predictable since the Biden administration is ‘doing exactly what they promised during the course of the campaign.’

The governor said that both Democrats and Republicans are unhappy with the administration’s immigration policies.

Abbott last week said Biden should shoulder blame amid allegations of child abuse and neglect at an overcrowded San Antonio migrant facility

Abbott last week said Biden should shoulder blame amid allegations of child abuse and neglect at an overcrowded San Antonio migrant facility

Freeman Expo Center is pictured. The facility is currently holding 1,900 child migrants

Freeman Expo Center is pictured. The facility is currently holding 1,900 child migrants 

Biden has come under fire for dismantling harsh Trump immigration policies, which has prompted a surge of migrants at the southern border.

Biden has come under fire for dismantling harsh Trump immigration policies, which has prompted a surge of migrants at the southern border.

‘This is a bipartisan response to the Biden administration because you have Democrat members of the United States Congress, you have Democratic members of the state legislature, as well as Democrat local officials who are pushing back against the Biden administration as much as conservatives in the state of Texas,’ Abbott said.

The governor specifically made mention of allegations that unaccompanied minors were being subjected to sexual abuse at Freeman Coliseum in San Antonio.

The arena has been repurposed to serve as a temporary shelter for migrant kids. As of Friday, there were about 1,900 children at the facility.

Abbott held a news conference outside the facility on Wednesday to call attention to ‘credible’ allegations of sexual abuse of minors.

The governor claimed that complaints were filed with the Texas Health and Human Services Commission and the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services.

Abbott has demanded that the Biden administration shut down the facility.

Democrats slammed Abbott on Friday, accusing him of playing ‘piñata politics,’ according to KSAT-TV.

‘Governor Abbott made the allegations without ever going inside and visiting with the kids,’ House Rep. Joaquin Castro said after touring the facility with other Democratic lawmakers on Friday.

‘The governor didn’t have the care to look these people in the face, in the eye, to see who they are and what they’re about.

Unaccompanied minors (left) and families and adults (right) are grouped separately as they wait to be processed

Unaccompanied minors (left) and families and adults (right) are grouped separately as they wait to be processed

Massive amounts of Central American migrants continued to arrive at the U.S.-Mexico border overnight Saturday to Sunday

Massive amounts of Central American migrants continued to arrive at the U.S.-Mexico border overnight Saturday to Sunday

Migrants from Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador wait in line to be processed by Border Patrol agents after crossing illegally into the U.S.

Migrants from Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador wait in line to be processed by Border Patrol agents after crossing illegally into the U.S. 

CBP data shows migrant crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border is vastly higher in 2021 compared to 2020, which saw a decrease. Illegal crossing have reached an all-time high under Biden

CBP data shows migrant crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border is vastly higher in 2021 compared to 2020, which saw a decrease. Illegal crossing have reached an all-time high under Biden

‘That’s a special kind of cowardice.’

Castro added: ‘His intent was to drop a political bomb. He’s trying to use the issue of immigration as a wedge issue.

‘The governor doesn’t care about these kids. He wants to send them back where they came from.’

During his interview on Fox News on Sunday, Abbott was asked why he didn’t sound the alarm about allegations of sexual abuse of migrant children during the Trump administration.

‘There are multiple differences between what happened in the Trump administration and what is happening now,’ Abbott said.

‘First, the Trump administration remained in constant communication with me and with my office and let us know what was going on.

‘Second, I saw reports about exactly what you’re talking about and saw that those reports were filed with federal agencies… And so, we had a duty to respond to any complaint about child sexual abuse in Texas as well as to investigate it, and that’s exactly what I did to make sure it was addressed.’

Abbott isn’t the only high profile Republican to call attention to the plight of migrant children being housed in federal facilities near the border. 

House Rep. Steve Scalise, the Republican from Louisiana, slammed Biden’s border policies on Saturday as ‘child abuse’ as he shared images from the border including one of a migrant facility that is at 16 times its capacity.

‘How could President Biden and Kamala Harris allow this to go on and not even come here and see it for themselves?’ the House Minority Whip questioned during a press availability at the border. ‘It’s a disgrace.’

‘We went into a facility — in the middle of a pandemic — that is designed to hold no more than 250 people. Today, there’s more than 4,000 people,’ Scalise continued as he was joined by a group of 10 other Republican lawmakers.

Last month, Harris was appointed by Biden as point person for the administration’s response to the crisis, specifically to address the root causes in Northern Triangle countries that lead to the mass amount of migrants fleeing to the U.S.

In the vice president’s 18 days in charge of the growing immigration crisis, she has not once visited the southern border or Central American countries from which migrants are traveling. 

Biden has refused to call the surge in illegal border crossing a crisis. 

Alejandro Mayorkas, Biden’s head of the Department of Homeland Security, said on Thursday that he is looking to crack down on illegal immigration by taking more legal action against border jumpers and targeting cities that act as a safe haven for them.

GOP Whip Steve Scalise claimed the situation at southern border facilities are 'child abuse' as he shared images of massively overcrowded pens

GOP Whip Steve Scalise claimed the situation at southern border facilities are ‘child abuse’ as he shared images of massively overcrowded pens

'We went into a facility — in the middle of a pandemic — that is designed to hold no more than 250 people. Today, there's more than 4,000 people,' Scalise detailed in a press conference over the weekend

‘We went into a facility — in the middle of a pandemic — that is designed to hold no more than 250 people. Today, there’s more than 4,000 people,’ Scalise detailed in a press conference over the weekend

Images of the facility in a video shared to Twitter show migrant children crammed together on the floor of a see-through pen with only Mylar blankets to comfort them

Images of the facility in a video shared to Twitter show migrant children crammed together on the floor of a see-through pen with only Mylar blankets to comfort them

Scalise slammed President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris for not yet visiting the southern border amid a growing humanitarian crisis there

Scalise slammed President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris for not yet visiting the southern border amid a growing humanitarian crisis there

‘I see cases now where we apprehend and remove individuals that I think need to be prosecuted criminally,’ Mayorkas said during a virtual town hall with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) employees last week where he also revealed Biden is considering restarting construction on Donald Trump’s border wall.

‘Quite frankly, I’m going to have to understand why some of these individuals are not subject to a Title 8 USC 1326 case and I intend to work with the DOJ in that regard,’ he added.

Entering the US illegally is a misdemeanor under Title 8 Section 1325.

Furthermore, reentering the country after being ousted is a felony under Title 8 Section 1326.

Mayorkas told ICE employees that DHS will also take on so-called sanctuary cities that refuse to work with the agency to turn over illegal immigrants hiding out there.

He also vowed during the meeting, according to notes of the conversation reviewed by the Washington Times, that he is opposed to some more progressive immigration and border protection policies, like the push from the far left to totally abolish ICE.

‘I’m 100% opposed to the abolition of ICE,’ he said. ‘It is the opposite of what I think needs to occur. I think we need to strengthen our policies and practices and communicate more effectively what we do and why we do it.’

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