President Joe Biden went after Governors Greg Abbott (R-TX) and Ron DeSantis (R-FL) for their treatment of migrants, calling them “un-American.”
While delivering remarks at the 45th Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute Gala on Thursday, Biden addressed Abbott and DeSantis’ decisions to bus migrants to other locations.
“Instead of working with us on solutions, Republicans are playing politics with human beings, using them as props,” Biden said.
He added, “What they’re doing is simply wrong. It’s un-American, it’s reckless, and we have a process in place to manage migrants at the border.”
The president argued that Republican officials “should not interfere with that process by waging a political — these political stunts.”
He explained, “It’s long overdue for Senate Republicans to come to the table and provide a pathway for citizenship for DREAMers, those in temporary status, farm workers, and essential workers. We need to modernize our laws so businesses get workers they need and families don’t have to wait decades to be brought back together. It’s time to get it done.”
Watch Biden’s comments below:
.@POTUS addresses GOP governors' tactic of busing asylum seekers — for, I believe, the first time — at the @HispanicCaucus gala: "Republicans are playing politics with human beings — using them as props. What they're doing is simply wrong. It's un-American. It's reckless." pic.twitter.com/BIrQLxWMba
— Daniel Marans (@danielmarans) September 16, 2022
On Thursday, The New York Times reported that DeSantis sent two planes full of migrants to Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts and Abbott sent two busloads to Vice President Kamala Harris’s residence.
The outlet noted the trips transported a total of roughly 150 migrants.
DeSantis said on Thursday, “All those people in D.C. and New York were beating their chest when Trump was president, saying they were so proud to be sanctuary jurisdictions.”
He continued, “The minute even a small fraction of what those border towns deal with every day are brought to their front door, they all go berserk.”
Abbott took to Twitter after the migrants arrived near Harris’ residence, saying, “VP Harris claims our border is ‘secure’ and denies the crisis. We’re sending migrants to her backyard to call on the Biden Administration to do its job and secure the border.”
This morning, two Texas buses of migrants arrived at the Naval Observatory in DC.
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) September 15, 2022
VP Harris claims our border is “secure” & denies the crisis.
We’re sending migrants to her backyard to call on the Biden Administration to do its job & secure the border. https://t.co/H5n0ChTbIX
During an interview on “Meet the Press” over the weekend, Harris claimed the border is “secure.”