Texas Governor Greg Abbott reported this week that the total number of migrants sent from Texas to various sanctuary cities has now surpassed 63,000. The migrants are being transported by bus from Texas to major cities including Washington D.C., Philadelphia, New York City, Chicago, Denver, and Los Angeles.
Governor Abbott shared an update that over 63,000 migrants have been bused from Texas to six different liberal sanctuary cities as part of the state’s migrant transportation program.
Of the six cities, New York City has received the most migrants so far, with over 22,600 bused there since the start of the initiative. Chicago received the second highest number, with over 18,000 migrants bused from Texas. More than 12,500 migrants have been bused to Washington D.C. as well.
Abbott also posted a video displaying the continuing construction of border walls in Texas, with the latest footage showing work being done in Cameron County near the southern border.
The governor’s migrant busing actions fall under Texas’ Operation Lone Star, which aims to stem illegal border crossings. A nighttime photo showed members of the Texas National Guard stationed near newly installed razor wire barriers intended to deter migrants from crossing there.
Guard officials said the National Guard’s role is to detect, interdict and deter illegal border crossings, human trafficking and other transnational crimes into the United States along the southern border with Mexico.
Abbott and other Republican governors initiated the migrant busing strategy to draw attention to the impact of immigration on their states and pressure the federal government to take more action at the border. But the practice has drawn significant controversy with Democrats claiming it is a political stunt that unjustly targets migrants.
Abbott maintains that with the federal government failing to secure the border, Texas must take matters into its own hands and provide relief to overwhelmed border communities being flooded with new arrivals. The busing policy aims to redistribute migrants to self-declared sanctuary cities that have resources to care for them he argues.
