In the Texas tradition of showdowns, Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott last week told the federal government that he was ready, willing and able to bus every illegal immigrant dropped in a Texas town straight to Washington, D.C.
Somebody blinked, and it was not Abbott, according to new reports.
Late last week, the Texas Division of Emergency Management sent buses to the communities that have been targeted by the Biden administration as dropping-off points for illegal immigrants once border facilities are overwhelmed.
Officials found something had changed since Abbott sounded off.
“In the last 24 hours, TDEM has dispatched buses to areas where communities have expressed concerns about the federal government dropping off migrants and has the capability to send as many as is necessary to fulfill the requests from mayors and county judges,” said Seth Christensen, chief of media and communications for TDEM, according to the Daily Mail.
“From the [Rio Grande Valley] to Terrell County, a large majority of the communities that originally reached out for support through this operation have now said that the federal government has stopped dropping migrants in their towns since the governor’s announcement on Wednesday,” he said.
While Biden continues to FAIL America with his open border policies, Texas is taking UNPRECEDENTED action to secure our state & country.
➡️ Enhanced vehicle inspections @ points of entry
➡️ Charter buses to send illegal immigrants to DC
➡️ Boat blockadesMore to come.
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) April 6, 2022
That represented a major difference from the aftermath of Abbott’s announcement last week when he said, “Overnight there were multiple communities in the Rio Grande Valley asking us to provide buses for them, maybe even planes.”
Although the legal foundation of Abbott’s order is uncertain, because the federal government has supreme authority in immigration matters, the value of the plan will be understood once Title 42 expires, according to Fox News.
Title 42 is a public health law that allowed immigration officials to turn back many illegal immigrants on the grounds that they could spread COVID-19 into the U.S. The Biden administration has said it will end enforcement of Title 42 on May 23, leading many to predict even more massive waves of illegal immigrants to spill over the border into America.
“I think it’s going to coincide very much with what’s going on with Title 42 when Biden lets a couple million more people cross over the border — not let them, but invites them,” Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said, according to Fox.
Paxton said Abbott’s plan is not gesture or gimmick, but a serious response to a difficult situation the Biden administration has allowed to grow worse.
“The governor has a lot to deal with as it relates to the border,” Paxton said. “And he’s got a federal government that is betraying the state of Texas, betraying the American people, and I think (Gov. Abbott) is just trying to figure out what he can do to protect the people of Texas.”
President Biden keeps in place mask mandates on airlines because of #COVID.
But will get rid of Title 42 in May, which keeps illegal immigrants with COVID out of the United States.
Science!
— Rep. Jim Jordan (@Jim_Jordan) April 11, 2022
On Monday, Abbott met with the Texas Border Sheriffs Coalition in El Paso and indicated he has no plans to back down.
“Texans demand and deserve an aggressive, comprehensive strategy to secure our border — not President Biden’s lackluster leadership,” Abbott said in a statement.
“As the federal government continues to roll back commonsense policies that once kept our communities safe, our local law enforcement has stepped up to protect Texans from dangerous criminals, deadly drugs and illegal contraband flooding into the Lone Star State.”
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
