GOP congressman blames Biden border crisis for deaths of 9 migrants in Rio Grande River

AP Photo/Fernando Llano

The bodies of nine migrants were found by Border Patrol agents on Saturday. They drowned in the Rio Grande River trying to cross over from Mexico into Eagle Pass, Texas. A search continues for more who may have been swept away. Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) says enough is enough. How many more people have to die before Joe Biden secures the border?

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His district covers a large amount of the border area. Gonzales is one of several elected officials who have been demanding that Joe Biden visit the border to see firsthand what his border crisis has produced in Texas and Arizona.

The nine dead migrants included a 13-year-old and a 14-year-old from Guatemala and two 16-year-olds from Mexico. They died as they crossed the Rio Grande River on Thursday. Three of the dead were found by Mexican authorities and six were found by U.S. Border Patrol. Thirty-seven migrants were rescued in that group as they crossed the river on Thursday. A total of 53 migrants were apprehended in that group.

Rep. Gonzales referenced other deaths reported of illegal migrants who have died trying to cross the border and asks, how many more people have to die before Joe Biden pays attention and acts?

Posting on Twitter, Gonzales said: ‘53 DEAD in a truck, 53 in a river, countless dead in ditches, gullies and desert throughout #TX23….how many more must die before Biden visits the border?’

Mexican authorities took 39 people into custody, with the tragedy coming after 53 migrants were found dead inside a tractor-trailer in San Antonio in a desperate attempt to cross the border illegally. Gonzales references the deaths of almost 50 migrants who were being smuggled across the border in a tractor-trailer truck. Illegal migrants were packed in the tractor-trailer like sardines without air-conditioning or water though the outside temperature was over 100 degrees.

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Many Texas officials have extended invitations to Joe Biden and Kamala Harris (the alleged border czar) to come to the southern border and tour it for a firsthand look at the humanitarian disaster that Biden’s neglect has created. Both have ignored the invitations. Governor Abbott has acted since the Biden border crisis began, first with Operation Lone Star and most recently, bussing willing illegal migrants to Democrat-led sanctuary cities. As of Friday, more than 7,600 migrants have been transported to the three cities – Washington, D.C., New York City, and Chicago.

Border states are left on their own to deal with the fall-out of Biden’s border crisis. Illegal migrants flood border towns and cities and they require housing and food and other basic necessities. Border towns do not have the resources to handle the number of migrants showing up. They flood the border without going through a legal port of entry to claim asylum. Most migrants, entering through the ports of entry or not, will not qualify for asylum as it is defined in immigration law now. The Biden administration doesn’t follow the rule of law in immigration law, though, so there is lots of confusion over what to do with all who are apprehended. Most are the beneficiaries of catch and release or immigration parole. They are apprehended and given information on contacting an ICE office when they get to their final destination. They travel across the country without restrictions.

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Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot is the latest Democrat who governs a sanctuary city to blast Governor Abbott for acting “inhumane” and un-American for bussing illegal migrants away from the overcrowded border to sanctuary cities. She has ignited a war of words with the governor just as the mayors of Washington, D.C. and NYC have done.

“With these continued political stunts, Governor Abbott has confirmed what unfortunately many of us had already known: that he is a man without any morals, humanity or shame,” Lightfoot said during a Thursday press conference.

Renea Eze, Abbott’s press secretary, fired back soon after Lightfoot’s comments on Thursday. “Mayor Lightfoot knows nothing about Texas’ busing strategy and needs to stop with the baseless lies and fearmongering,” Eze said in an interview with Fox News. “Texas continues stepping up and responding to the Biden-made border crisis, taking unprecedented action to address the historic levels of illegal immigrants, terrorists, and deadly drugs like fentanyl that are surging into our communities and overwhelming border towns.”

The truth is that the inhumane actions are coming from Joe Biden. The buck stops with him. Immigration is a federal responsibility. He has abandoned his responsibility as president to secure our border with Mexico. He has encouraged illegal migration with his actions. He came into office determined to undo all that the previous administration had done to secure the border and claimed the mantle of decency and humanity while doing so. He thinks it shows he is a better human being than Trump. People from around the world have taken his attitude as an open invitation to cross the border however they can. The Biden border crisis has produced a humanitarian crisis never before seen along the border. He has to be held accountable for that.

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The Biden border crisis is also a national security threat and a threat to Americans by the drug cartels smuggling record amounts of drugs, including cocaine and fentanyl. Americans are dying because of Biden’s neglect, as are migrants attempting to come into the United States illegally.

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Ed Morrissey 10:00 PM | November 22, 2024
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