White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki called Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s immigrant bus plan to the nation’s capital a “publicity stunt.”
This week, Gov. Greg Abbott directed the Texas Department of Emergency Management to charter buses to take migrants who have been released from federal custody to Washington, D.C.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki called Abbott’s immigrant bus plan to the nation’s capital a “publicity stunt.”
The plans come as the Title 42 public health order is set to end in late May.
“(There’s an) incredibly large number of migrants that the Biden administration is just leaving there in McAllen. Texas is now offering the process of being able to deploy or move all those migrants by bus to Washington D.C.,” Abbott said during a press conference on Wednesday.
Leaders in D.C. spoke out against Abbott’s plans on Thursday afternoon.
“(We’re) not aware of what authority the governor would be doing that under. I think it’s pretty clear this is a publicity stunt. His own office admits that a migrant would need to voluntarily be transported and can’t compel them to,” said Psaki.
When ABC13 tried to get some questions answered by Gov. Abbott, his office, instead, referred us to the Texas Department of Emergency Management.
They told us the volunteer process will be similar to mass hurricane evacuations. They said local leaders will need to reach out to the state and request the buses if there’s a need in their community. At which point, migrants out of federal custody will be asked if they want a ride to the nation’s capital.
Representatives from the Texas Department of Emergency Management confirmed the funding for this initiative will be used from the $2 billion border security funding appropriated by the Texas Legislature.
As for those buses, we’re told they’re already being prepped and inspected before being dispersed into communities across our state.
The Biden Administration is anticipated to move forward with lifting Title 42, a Trump-era order established at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Title 42 restrictions, which allow government authority to expel migrants under a public health emergency, could be dissolved by the end of May.
The Department of Homeland Security is expected to take steps toward lifting the Trump-era restrictions, which were originally issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, later this week.
Renata Castro, founder of Castro Legal Group, said when Title 42 restrictions are lifted, there will still be a case-by-case process that those seeking asylum have to go through. Castro said it is likely that due to the change in policy, fewer individuals will make it into the United States.
“Individuals will still have to be properly vetted,” Castro said. “And go through scrutiny to determine whether or not they have a credible fear for their lives in their home countries and if once they enter into the United States, they won’t be a flight or criminal risk. So, on the immigration side, it’s business as usual.”
Mark Jones, a political science professor at Rice University said the lack of comprehensive immigration reform has resulted in an overwhelmed immigration legal system. Currently, it could take at least two to three years for an asylum case to make it through the legal process, according to Jones.
“Now with the Ukrainian crisis, they run the risk of being accused of having a double standard if they do not enforce it for Ukrainians but continue to enforce it for Salvadorians, Hondurans and Haitians,” Jones said. “and for political reasons, the Biden Administration doesn’t want to be seen using healthcare and health service reasons for keeping Ukrainian asylum seekers out of the United States.”
Cesar Espinosa, the executive director of FIEL Houston agrees. He said, ultimately, this policy change is just a temporary fix to an immigration policy that needs lasting reform.
“We welcome this change,” Espinosa said. “Although we know it is not going to be the fix-all to whatever immigration problems there already are, including the (court) backlogs, as well as, it obviously doesn’t fix the situations in countries in which folks are migrating from.”
Democratic leaders and immigration advocates opposed the policy citing concerns that those who are seeking asylum, which is a legal process, were being sent back to their home countries in peril. Republican leaders claim lifting Title 42 restrictions will cause an influx of migrants waiting to cross U.S. borders.
“The Biden administration’s humanitarian decision to lift Title 42 and no longer enforce it is positive for asylum seekers,” Jones said, “but it may be negative for Texas Democrats as the (Gov. Greg) Abbott campaign will use this against all Texas Democrats from Beto O’Rourke to County Commissioner Adrian Garcia.”
