Seeing as President Joe Biden and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas have been so unbelievably ineffective at dealing with border policy, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is taking matters into his own hands and sending law enforcement personnel, drones, and other equipment to Texas in order to help stem the flow of illegal immigration. As we’ve reported, public health measure Title 42, which allowed border officials to deny some immigrants entry into the country, expired last week, meaning crossing attempts will likely continue to increase.
DeSantis is trying to help out by sending resources from the Sunshine State:
The list of support includes more than 100 Florida Highway Patrol troopers, 200 Florida Department of Law Enforcement officers and 800 Florida National Guard soldiers.
Other personnel involved includes 20 emergency management personnel, such as radio technicians and logisticians, and 20 Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation commission officers…
Vessels, fixed wing aircrafts, drones and mobile command vehicles are also being sent to the border.
The governor explained his actions Tuesday:
“The impacts of Biden’s Border Crisis are felt by communities across the nation, and the federal government’s abdication of duty undermines the sovereignty of our country and the rule of law,” DeSantis said in a statement.
“At my direction, state agencies including law enforcement and the Florida National Guard are being deployed to Texas, with assets including personnel, boats and planes. While Biden ignores the crisis he created, Florida stands ready to help Texas respond to this crisis,” he said.
It was just your average day near the Rio Grande River:
NEW: A @TxDPS trooper encountered a group of 30 Chinese nationals walking along a road near Roma, TX in the Rio Grande Valley. TX DPS says the trooper got them off the road, called Border Patrol, and agents responded to process the group. RGV continues to see surge of Chinese. pic.twitter.com/Iy6F5eVPbO
— Bill Melugin (@BillFOXLA) May 16, 2023
Texas Governor Greg Abbott Tuesday asked governors around the country to help do their part:
Every state is a border state under Biden’s open border policies.
I sent a letter to my fellow Governors asking them to deploy resources and help respond to this crisis.
Working together, we can provide the security Americans deserve.
Full letter: https://t.co/NjwaDRbq0A pic.twitter.com/YvMk0BOT4r
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) May 16, 2023
Like DeSantis, Abbott bashed the president for creating the disaster in his statement:
Governor Greg Abbott today urged the nation’s Governors to help support Texas’ unprecedented border security efforts in the wake of President Joe Biden ending Title 42 last week and his continued refusal to enforce federal immigration laws…
The flood of illegal border activity invited by the Biden Administration flows directly across the southern border into Texas communities, but this crisis does not stop in our state. In the federal government’s absence, we, as Governors, must band together to combat President Biden’s ongoing border crisis and ensure the safety and security that all Americans deserve.
He also thanked the states of Florida and Idaho for their efforts so far. Additionally, Abbott added a long list of things he’s had to do to secure the border in the absence of federal leadership, including securing $4 billion in funding and hiring the Lone Star State’s first Border Czar. (Hopefully, the appointee will do a far better job than Vice President Kamala Harris, who as Biden’s Border Czar has accomplished virtually nothing.)
The announcement wasn’t DeSantis’ only move on the border issue Tuesday. He also signed into law four bills aimed at curbing human trafficking, stating that 72 percent of trafficking victims last year were here in the country illegally. The measures provide a variety of tools to fight the scourge, including requiring mandatory minimum sentences when trackers possess or discharge a firearm during the course of their trafficking crime.
JUST IN: Governor DeSantis signs legislation to combat human trafficking and support victims.
“We want to use every resource at our disposal put human traffickers out of business and into jail.” pic.twitter.com/8MdjlPhoq0
— DeSantis War Room 🐊 (@DeSantisWarRoom) May 16, 2023
Biden’s continued failure at the border will haunt this nation for years to come. He’s often sold to us by the corporate media and his handlers as this kindly old gent, but he has overseen misery on a vast scale, largely as a result of his policies. DeSantis and Abbott are at least trying to do something—which is more than can be said about the Biden administration.
See also:
It Begins: Border Overwhelmed as Thousands Line up to Cross When Title 42 Expires at Midnight
Skyrocketing Number of Deaths Shows Human Cost of Biden’s Border Policies—’It’s Like a Graveyard’