MISSION, Texas – Texas Gov. Greg Abbott held a news conference Tuesday and called on the Biden administration to help address the state’s border security efforts.
“This crisis is the result of President Biden’s open-door policies,” Abbott said. “It invites illegal immigration. It is creating a humanitarian crisis in Texas right now.”
Abbott said Border Patrol warned the Biden administration that an influx of migrants was coming and about the tremendous strain the surge is now putting on Border Patrol resources in South Texas.
“It is clear, they are completely unprepared for what is going on the border, and they are going to be even more unprepared for what will be happing in the coming months,” Abbott said.
Biden administration officials have said they don’t believe the situation at the southern border is a full-blown crisis, calling it a challenge instead -- one they said they are dedicated to managing.
“I need the Biden administration to step up,” Abbott said.
Abbott said he is not waiting to act and is launching Operation Lone Star.
“This is an operation similar to what we’ve done in the past where we provide a surge of resources to the border,” Abbott said.
Abbott said he toured the Texas-Mexico border area and saw issues firsthand. He said he saw about 21 people exiting a raft and walking up a dirt road during his aerial tour. The raft, he said, returned to the Mexico side of the border.
Abbott said that in addition to funding ICE, the Biden administration needs to provide the resources, including bringing on judges, to take on the number of immigration cases that are pending.
Watch the full video of the event below.
