Homeland Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas blamed Texas Gov. Greg Abbott for the influx of migrants into blue cities and states across the country without examining the Biden administration’s policies.
Mayorkas expressed concern over Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s refusal to cooperate with other governors and local officials, attributing it to a “remarkable failure of governance.”
Mayorkas commented on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” in response to complaints from Democratic mayors, including New York’s Eric Adams, about the lack of federal assistance in handling the influx of migrants into their cities.
Since the launch of Operation Lone Star in March 2021, Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s office reported that at least 95,000 migrants have been transported to “sanctuary cities” like New York, Washington, Chicago, Philadelphia, Denver, and Los Angeles.
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These moves have occurred despite objections from officials in those destination cities. Alejandro Mayorkas faulted the Texas governor for his gambit of busing migrants to blue cities across the country.
In a court battle with the White House, the Lone Star State is contesting the placement of razor wire near the border to discourage illegal migration. The Biden administration has expressed its intention to remove this barrier.
Abbott responded to Mayorkas, emphasizing the secretary’s claim that the surge at the border was caused by factors such as “climate change, poverty, increasing level of authoritarianism.”
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Mayorkas emphasized that the DHS has addressed the challenges faced by cities nationwide. On December 27, Mayor Adams issued an executive order mandating that charter bus companies inform the city’s Emergency Management Office at least 32 hours before arriving in New York City.
The order also restricts drop-off hours to 8:30 a.m. and noon daily, designating a single location on West 41st Street between Eighth and Ninth Avenues in Manhattan. Greg Abbott has transported migrants to Democratic-run cities as a strategy to address the issue in his state, frequently criticizing Democrats for the ongoing migrant crisis.
“We cannot allow buses with people needing our help to arrive without warning any hour of the day and night,” Adams said. “This not only prevents us from assisting in an orderly way, it puts those who have already suffered so much in danger.”
ALSO READ: “Enforce It, and We’ll Sue!” Feds Warn Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on His New Immigration Law
Adams also floated expanding the bus order to apply to planes and trains carrying migrants. “We’re dealing with a person who just wants to disrupt,” Adams said of Abbott, adding that his order was “to send the right message to bus operators — ‘You should not participate in the actions of Governor Abbott.’”
New York City has received more than 161,000 migrants in the last 18 months, causing financial strain on the city, as reported by city officials. In the fiscal year 2023, which concluded on September 30, there were over 2.47 million encounters with migrants registered along the US-Mexico border, based on US Customs and Border Protection data.
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