Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) on Thursday announced that the state plans to build a wall along the border with Mexico.
The story: Abbott made the announcement during a “Border Security Summit” press conference in Del Rio while discussing a number of border initiatives, including allocating $1 billion for border security in Texas’ budget and creating a Governor’s Task Force on Border and Homeland Security.
He also announced an interstate compact with Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey that would involve asking other states to send law enforcement to “to assist in making arrests and jailing.
Abbott did not disclose any additional information about the plan to build a barrier along the Mexico border but said he would discuss the plan in more detail next week.
What he said: The governor made an appearance on Fox News’s “The Ingraham Angle” Thursday night after the summit.
“We have to build a border [wall]. I’ve been down here talking to the people in the Rio Grande Valley and the way they are being overrun is reprehensible,” Abbott said “It’s disastrous what the Biden administration has done.”
“President Trump had adequately secured our border. He had the ‘Remain in Mexico’ policy and began building the border wall and now suddenly all of that disappeared and … it has led to a dramatic increase in the number of people coming across the border,” he said.
“But it’s not just unaccompanied minors, it’s people who are causing great damage and harm to the residents right here in Del Rio as well as up and down the entire border,” the governor added.
In a separate statement, Abbott blamed the Biden administration’s policies for a “humanitarian crisis” at the southern border.
“President Biden’s open-border policies have led to a humanitarian crisis at our southern border as record levels of illegal immigrants, drugs, and contraband pour into Texas,” the governor said.
“While securing the border is the federal government’s responsibility, Texas will not sit idly by as this crisis grows. The state is working collaboratively with communities impacted by the crisis to arrest and detain individuals coming into Texas illegally. Our efforts will only be effective if we work together to secure the border, make criminal arrests, protect landowners, rid our communities of dangerous drugs, and provide Texans with the support they need and deserve. This is an unprecedented crisis, and Texas is responding with the most robust and comprehensive border plan the nation has ever seen,” he added.
How we got here: President Biden paused the construction of the border wall shortly after he took office.
Earlier this month, Abbott issued a disaster declaration for 34 counties along or near the Texas border in Mexico to address certain issues with illegal immigration.
