Article author:
Associated Press
Paul J. Weber
Austin, Texas (AP) — Following the fear of human smuggling that killed 53 people, Republican Governor Greg Abbott said Ordered State Soldiers Inspect More Trucks — Re-expanding Border Guard Missions, Costing Billions of Dollars, Given National Guard Arrest Rights and Bus Immigrants to Washington, D.C.
Abbott's rigorous plans haven't taken place this year and have been curbing the number of cross-border people since he began deploying them.
Authorities say Monday's deadly tractor trailer journey has begun along the Texas border. US officials have prevented immigrants from crossing 523,000 times between January and May, from 417,000 times in the same period a year ago. This reflects that the intersection is at or near the highest in about 20 years across the country's southern border.
The most deadly smuggling attempt in U.S. history is Abbott's massive attempt as the second governor, scheduled to be reelected in November, points his finger at President Joe Biden. Showed the limits of border equipment. Immigrant advocates are opposed to Abbott's criticism, saying Biden is focusing on enforcement.
"Texas will take action to play our role in reducing illegal immigrants entering our country," Abbott said on Wednesday while at the border of the town of Eagle Pass. I told you.
He said the tragedy triggered state soldiers to begin inspecting more tractor trailers. He did not provide details about the scope or location of the test. But unlike the three-month-old inspection work, which gridlocked the state's 1,200-mile (1,930 km) border for a week, soldiers aren't checking all tractor trailers when they arrive in Texas. There is none.
The Texas Department of Public Safety did not answer questions on Friday about the number of trucks inspected since the Governor's order and whether immigrants were found.
Critics have questioned transparency and indicators of what the current $ 3 billion mission is since Operation Lone Star began in the spring of 2021. It has little to do with border security. After the hasty deployment of the Texas National Guard, some members complained of low morale, late salaries, and little to do.
Since April, Abbott has offered cross-border immigrants a bus ride to Washington, D.C., saying they have brought immigration issues to the front door of Congress. To date, about 3,000 migrants have taken part in the trip at a cost of over $ 5 million.
"Greg Abbott, all he wants to do is Gotcha phrases and Gotcha stunts with no real solution," said Senator Roland Gutierrez of the Democratic Party, including Sun's backstreets. The senator said. Antonio found the truck abandoned. "He's probably spending over $ 10 billion to secure the border and hasn't done one pity to fix it."
US border authorities have at least It is blocking immigrants more often at the southern border than at any point in 20 years. Immigration stopped about 240,000 times in May, an increase of one-third from a year ago.
The comparison with pre-pandemic levels is complicated because migrants exiled under the public health authorities known as Title 42 do not face legal implications and encourage repeated attempts. According to officials, 25% of May encounters were with people who were suspended at least once in the previous year.
Abbott's previous truck inspection efforts led to great backlash, serious economic loss, and soldiers did not find immigrants or drugs.
Abbott stopped the check after signing an agreement with the governors of four neighboring states in Mexico, but may re-impose if no improvement is seen. I warned. The number of immigrants over May was higher than in April.
Asked about it on Wednesday, Abbott said, "Accountability may come soon." He also blamed Mexico's federal government and said it needed to do more.
He noted that more than 4,000 immigrants arrested on suspicion of trespassing state criminals, 14,000 felony arrests, and drug seizures, saying the operation was overall successful. increase. He also said Texas returned more than 22,000 immigrants last year. This is just one part of the border crossing that tried to cross the southern border in a month.
Before the tragedy on Monday, Texas' most deadly smuggling attempt was about 100 miles (160 km) southwest of San Antonio, with 19 dead bodies in a sultry trailer. It was discovered in 2003. Former U.S. lawyer Jeff Baden, who helped prosecute the case, said the ruling for smuggling immigrants was not high enough.
"It's not a deterrent to those at risk," he said.
The first visitor to some of the immigrants who were drawn from the truck and hospitalized in San Antonio was Antonio Fernandez, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Catholic Charities.
According to Fernandez, summer is usually late, but this year it isn't. Hotels that normally accommodate 50 Catholic charities have recently been filled with 100 people each night, and now the number of staff supporting family immigrants has increased from one to eight.
"My conversations with many of these people are clearly nothing in their country," Fernandez said. "They have no life and don't feel safe. They are hungry. For them, America has no choice. That is the only option they have."