Texas plans to build a military “base camp” with a capacity of up to 2,300 soldiers. It does so in a bid to resist the surge of illegal crossings. The camp will be located at the southern border in Eagle Pass. The city has become a major hot spot for migrants since Joe Biden took over as President in 2021.
Speaking at a news conference, Governor Greg Abbott said: “As opposed to being scattered around many different places across this region, they will be operating out of one place. It will amass a large army in a very strategic area. It will increase the speed and flexibility of the Texas National Guard to be able to respond to crossings.”
Abbott says the camp will “dramatically improve conditions” for soldiers. It is his latest effort to limit border crossings into his state. Officials expect that by April, the bed capacity will have grown.
They will continue to add 300 beds each month until the completion of the camp. The completed camp will include dining rooms, individual rooms for soldiers, weapons storage rooms, vehicle maintenance bays, and even a helicopter pad.
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“Before now, the Texas National Guard had been scattered across this entire region in cramped quarters, away from fellow soldiers, and sometimes travelling long distances to do their job,” Abbott said in a statement. “This base camp is going to dramatically improve conditions for our soldiers.”
Plans for the camp come amid an ongoing row between the Biden administration and Abbott on how to best control the entry of migrants. The crossing has become a full-blown crisis as migrants are crossing over the US-Mexico border daily.
In the past, Abbott had state troopers install a long stretch of concertina razor wire along the Rio Grande River near the border city of Eagle Pass. It was to curb migrant entry, but the Biden administration fought back. They did not want the wire installation and asked the Supreme Court to allow Border Patrol agents to cut down the razor wire.
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The Supreme Court ruled in the US government’s favor earlier this month. However, Texas has said it will continue to install more razor wire. “We are putting up wire … everywhere we can.” Texas Lt Gov Dan Patrick told Fox News. “If they cut it, we will replace it.”
More than one million migrants have made their way into the US since Joe Biden became President nearly four years ago. The US migrant crisis has become a key battleground ahead of the 2024 presidential election.
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Joe Biden is expected to face off against Donald Trump in what is looking to be a rematch of the 2020 contest. In the 2023 fiscal year, the US Border Patrol recorded 2,063,692 encounters with undocumented immigrants. The number fell from the record high it attained in 2022.
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