Texas Governor Greg Abbott stated that he has not received a response to any of the eight letters he sent to the Biden administration outlining some of his recommendations to end the border crisis. In an interview on Fox, Abbott commented:
I provided eight letters to the Biden administration, which includes the president and to [Homeland Security Secretary] Mayorkas ... And I personally handed a letter to President Biden and to Secretary Mayorkas when they showed up in El Paso, Texas. [I] outlined five things that they could do that would eliminate the crisis a the border (...) in response to all eight of those letters, I’ve heard absolutely nothing from the Biden administration
Abbott's fight to ease the border crisis
Faced with inaction from the Biden administration, officials and legislators in Texas are looking for ways to take the reins in the fight against illegal immigration. However, many of these measures have been rejected by the Biden-led government, and the situation has devolved into a legal battle.
A clear example is the lawsuit filed by the Department of Justice (DOJ) against Texas that seeks to disable the SB 4 law. This rule states that if a person enters or attempts to enter Texas from a foreign nation at any place other than the legal port of entry, this will be considered a misdemeanor and the person may be arrested by local authorities anywhere in the state.
According to the DOJ, the measure "intrudes into a field that is occupied by the federal government and is preempted." However, Abbott assured that he is willing to take the case to the Supreme Court to defend the legislation passed in his state.
Illegal immigration crisis
Texas is one of the states, along with Arizona, that has suffered the most from the consequences of the illegal immigration crisis. Since Biden has been president, the total number of migrants who have crossed U.S. borders illegally has skyrocketed to around 10 million. In 2023, records were broken, with more than three million illegal immigrants arriving in the country, according to official records from the Customs and Border Protection Agency.
Although the official figures during this period add up to more than 7.5 million illegal immigrants, Border Patrol sources and experts indicate that between 1.6 and 2.5 million additional people have entered the United States without being intercepted by law enforcement.
