In a Sunday appearance on “Fox and Friends,” Texas Lt. Governor Dan Patrick (R) spoke with the hosts about his state’s decision to bus illegal immigrants to Washington, D.C., saying that “it’s time for a showdown” in the courts.
“You’re seeing the first step in a constitutional showdown between the governor and the legislature and the state of Texas and the federal government,” Patrick said. He then went on to criticize Press Secretary Jen Psaki for claiming Texas’ move is simply a publicity stunt and the state has no power to enforce sending illegal immigrants to D.C.
“Let me tell you what our authority and power is,” Patrick responded. “We have an oath to defend the constitution of Texas and the United States of America and to protect the lives and welfare of our citizens,” he told “Fox and Friends.”
Patrick also slammed the Biden administration for its willingness to send illegal immigrants to cities all across the U.S. except for the nation’s capital. “I wish someone would ask Jen Psaki on Monday, ‘By the way, why don’t you just welcome [illegal immigrants] to D.C.? If it’s good enough that they can go to any city in the country, what’s wrong, Jen? Why don’t you just welcome them? … Don’t you like illegal immigrants, Jen?’” Patrick asked.
“So what’s the problem?” he continued. “Because they’re being shipped all over this country in the middle of the night.” Patrick went on to explain a conversation he had with a mayor who called him when he found out Border Patrol would be sending 100 illegal immigrants to his town. The mayor told Patrick, “I don’t have the police force to handle, we don’t have the system to handle, we’re a small town.” Patrick told the “Fox and Friends” hosts that “this happens all the time.”
Due to the Biden administration’s decision to end Title 42, the problem could get even worse. Last Wednesday, in response to President Joe Biden’s termination of Title 42, Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott announced that his state will begin busing illegal immigrants caught in Texas to the nation’s capital. “With the Biden administration ending Title 42 expulsions in May, Texas will be taking its own unprecedented actions this month to do what no state in America has ever done in the history of this country to better secure our state, as well as our nation,” Abbott said.
Title 42 allowed Border Patrol to deport millions of illegal immigrants and force them to await their asylum claims outside of the U.S. due to the COVID-19 health emergency. Now, with the ending of Title 42, experts and Republican state leaders are warning that illegal immigration could surge even more.
“Revoking Title 42 will create an unprecedented surge at the southern border and it will overwhelm law enforcement agencies and non-governmental organizations as well,” a Republican lawsuit against the Biden administration’s rollback of Title 42 states. “The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, (DHS), estimates getting rid of Title 42 will result in as many as 18,000 migrants per day – which could mean 540,000 migrants in a single month.”