(Trends Wide) — Shortly after the Republican Governor of Texas, Greg Abbott, ordered the closure of six points of entry along the US-Mexico border amid a surge in migrants, he issued a statement saying that he “directed the Department of Public Safety and the National Guard to maintain their presence in and around ports of entry to deter crossings. “
The governor said this approach comes after the Biden administration “switched to a different strategy that abandons border security.”
“The Biden administration is in complete disarray and is handling the border crisis just as badly as the evacuation from Afghanistan,” the governor said in the statement.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) told Trends Wide that it is not seeking help from the state of Texas to close the points of entry at the US-Mexico border.
“The Department of Homeland Security is not seeking the help of the State of Texas to close the points of entry. It would be a violation of federal law for the Texas National Guard to do so unilaterally,” said DHS spokeswoman Marsha Espinosa.
Earlier this Thursday, Governor Abbott had said that he ordered the Department of Public Safety and the state National Guard to close six points of entry along the border between the United States and Mexico amid a surge in migrants.
The Republican called the crisis at the border serious and said “agents are overwhelmed by chaos.”
“The crisis at the border is so dire that US Customs and Border Protection is requesting our help as their agents are overwhelmed by chaos. Unlike President Biden, the state of Texas remains committed to security. of our border and the protection of Americans, “the governor had said.
Thousands waiting in Del Rio
Earlier, the regional director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, Victor Escalon, said that all entry points to Del Rio, Texas, will be closed due to the overwhelming number of migrants there.
The number of migrants waiting to be processed reached 9,504 on Thursday afternoon, according to the local sheriff.
“Our federal partners are working tirelessly and doing what they are assigned to do. They are understaffed. They are tired,” said Val Verde County Sheriff Joe Frank Martinez.
According to the United States Customs and Border Protection website, the “Del Rio Sector is responsible for detecting and preventing the smuggling and illegal entry of undocumented immigrants into the United States along 394 of the Rio Grande and Lake Amistad that form the border between the United States and Mexico. The area covers 142,612 square kilometers of Texas and covers 482 kilometers in Texas from the border between the United States and Mexico. “
