Texas Governor Greg Abbott was in Manhattan, New York on September 27 and offered rare praise of democrats Eric Adams, the current mayor of New York City, and Gov. Kathy Hochul for calling out President Joe Biden over failures in the immigration process. New York City has experienced a crushing wave of immigrants that has overwhelmed shelters and care facilities.
The Big Apple has seen approximately 120,000 migrants come in the last 12 months. Around 15,800 illegal immigrants have been bussed from Texas to New York City in that time period as part of Operation Lone Star.
While Abbott gave praise for pressuring the federal government to do more, he also stated his disagreement with a new policy that will allow Venezuelan immigrants to immediately apply for a work permit. Work permits are one of the most controversial tactics being applied to immigration reform.
Democrats see the permits as a way to allow immigrants to survive and care for their families. Many Republicans see efforts to provide work permits as a magnet that will only attract more illegal immigrants to come to the U.S.
Abbott said the process of handling immigrants in New York City was orderly and calm in comparison with the southern border. He explained that because immigrants to the city arrive on buses at city centers, the process is controllable.
Texas Gov. Abbott makes rare NYC stop where he lauds Dems Adams, Hochul for pressuring Biden on migrant crisis https://t.co/dUH74J5ycI
— Fox News (@FoxNews) September 28, 2023
Along the southern border, Texas is seeing over 9,000 illegal immigrants crossing every day, many of whom are not apprehended or are simply released into the country with a notice to appear before an immigration judge.
One result of the crush of illegal migrants in Texas has been increasing crime in towns and cities near the border. Houston is considerably more dangerous than New York City at least in part to the number of illegal immigrants that have come since 2018. Since Operation Lone Star began in 2021, the program has resulted in the capture of nearly half a million immigrants and has made over 30,000 felony arrests.
New York City has recently reported several disturbing crimes committed by illegal immigrants including attacks on police officers and assaults on women and children. The city has announced plans to reduce overtime for public safety workers and is requesting about $12 billion in aid to handle the number of immigrants the city has taken on.
The Biden administration has done very little to ease the crisis at the border. In May, a policy that allowed the immediate deportation of certain immigrants was allowed to lapse which has led to surging numbers of immigrants coming into the country not seen in many years.
Abbott was clear that he lays the blame for the illegal immigrant crisis squarely on the Biden administration for failing to do more to prevent the “unsustainable” flood of illegal immigrants.
