Greg Abbott has deployed the National Guard to re-install razor wire to deter migrants – as one mayor declared an emergency amid an influx of 14,000 people.
The Texas Governor launched a blistering attack on Joe Biden on Wednesday, slamming him for ‘cutting the wire’ and assuring Texans he was having it repaired.
He shared footage of members of the Texas National Guard unravelling the new barrier before putting it up along the besieged banks of the Rio Grande.
It comes as Eagle Pass is overwhelmed by migrants flooding the border, with 4,000 crossing on Wednesday, 14,000 since last week and 270,000 this year.
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Despite the desperation, Biden on Wednesday granted temporary work permits to 472,000 Venezuelans who arrived in the country between January 1 and July 31.
The bridge between Eagle Pass and the Mexican city across the border, Piedras Negras, was closed on Wednesday so border agents could be redeployed to work on processing migrants.
Randy Clark, a retired Border Patrol agent, said the decision to close the border to those legally crossing back and forth showed the scale of the problem.
‘The only closure at the border is one of two ports of entry where legal residents and citizens cross. The inconvenience by DHS is reserved for legitimate trade and travel,’ he wrote on X.
‘No impediments on the constant flow of illegal traffic between the ports. ‘This government is on crazy pills!’
The line for processing illegal immigrants on Wednesday stretched for five miles on Wednesday, NewsNation reported, and wound its way back into Mexico.
Rolando Salinas, the mayor of Eagle Pass, said 2,500 people crossed into his town of 29,000 on Monday – and 7,200 the week before.
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The figure is a 15.5 percent decrease on the same time period last year, but Salinas said his town was still struggling.
‘It has taken a toll on our local resources, specifically our police force and our fire department,’ he said on Tuesday night.
‘I’ve been getting a lot of calls from our constituents that they get worried, they see a lot of people in our community.
‘But it is my understanding that some of these people, they don’t want to be there. So they’re leaving (the shelters), and they’re on our streets, and I understand the concerns of a lot of people.’
The Biden administration said it will send 800 active-duty military personnel to the border, to boost efforts by the 2,500 National Guardsmen already deployed to help Customs and Border Protection at the border.
Abbott, the Texas governor, said he was also sending additional members of the state National Guard.
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‘Texas installed razor wire in Eagle Pass to stop illegal crossings,’ said Abbott. ‘Today the Biden Admin CUT that wire, opening the floodgates to illegal immigrants.
‘I immediately deployed more Texas National Guard to repel illegal crossings & install more razor wire.’
And amid the anguish at the border, the Biden administration was trumpeting its Venezuela decision.
Alejandro Mayorkas, the Homeland Security Secretary, granted the expansion of the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) due to ‘Venezuela’s increased instability and lack of safety due to the enduring humanitarian, security, political, and environmental conditions,’ the department said in a statement.
There are currently approximately 242,700 TPS beneficiaries under Venezuela’s existing TPS designation, who will be able to remain a further 18 months.
There are an additional approximately 472,000 nationals of Venezuela who are now eligible for the scheme.
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But supporters of the scheme said it allowed those migrants awaiting processing to work and support themselves, reducing the burden on the states.
‘More than 116,000 asylum seekers have come to New York City since last spring in search of the American Dream,’ tweeted Eric Adams, the mayor of New York City, and one of the most vocal in calling for migrants to be allowed to work.
‘Our administration and our partners across the city have led the calls to ‘Let Them Work,’ so I want to thank @POTUS for hearing our entire coalition, including our hard-working congressional delegation, and taking this important step that will bring hope to the thousands of Venezuelan asylum seekers currently in our care who will now be immediately eligible for Temporary Protected Status.’
Kathy Hochul, the governor of New York, said she too was pleased – and appeared to claim credit for the decision.
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‘There’s more work to do as we address the migrant crisis, but the State of New York is prepared to immediately begin the process of signing people up for work authorization & getting them into jobs so they can become self-sufficient.’
* ORIGINAL ARTICLE:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12543161/amp/eagle-pass-texas-border-greg-abbott-razor-wire-migrant-crossings.html?ito=smartnews
