It’s a great time to be an illegal immigrant in the United States. In 2021, there were an estimated 1.7 million migrant encounters , with 2.3 million in 2022. 2023 promises to top the past two years, however, with an estimated 2.3 million through the month of April and five more months left in the year.
All these numbers suit the Democrat agenda, and no steps are being taken to stop the influx at the southern border. As the “southern border” problem becomes a national crisis, however, some Republican-led states are taking matters into their own hands and helping struggling border states stem the flow.
Understanding the ripple effects of unchecked illegal immigration to their own states and resources, several governors across the United States have offered personnel and assistance to help struggling border towns, such as those in Texas.
The help comes in response to pleas from Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who quickly understood there would be no help from the federal government and sent out a call for additional support. Calling on The Emergency Management Assistance Compact, which authorizes states to assist each other in times of crisis, Abbott wrote to governors nationwide, stating, “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.”
He penned, “Join us in the mission to defend our national sovereignty and territorial integrity and send all available law enforcement personnel and resources to the Texas-Mexico border to serve alongside our thousands of Texas National Guard soldiers and Texas Department of Public Safety troopers.”
So far, Florida, Mississippi, Iowa, Tennessee, Virginia, Idaho, South Dakota, and Nebraska have agreed to send National Guard resources to the southern border, with West Virginia and South Carolina recently promising support as well. Many more states are poised to send troops to struggling Texas in the upcoming days.
The aid comes as Abbott attempts to stop the flood with legislation, including adding to the border wall, declaring an emergency, and designating drug cartels as terrorist organizations. In addition, Abbott continues to bus illegal immigrants to liberal cities such as Washington, D.C., New York City, Chicago, and Philadelphia.
The decision to bus illegals to Democratic strongholds has elicited protests from the affected cities, who claim they do not have the resources to care for them. Abbott’s point has been made, although the federal government continues to ignore the problem.
The Biden administration is claiming victory, having dodged the expected surge at the border following the expiration of Title 42. In a move widely condemned by Democrats, the Biden administration authorized sending 1,500 troops to the border for “administrative” work.
Not only did the “surge” not occur, but the numbers of illegal immigrant encounters dropped significantly, The Biden administration claims this drop is the result of new enforcement measures that encourage people to use one of the many pathways to come across, including an app.
The administration’s plan only expedites the processing and release of illegal immigrants, however, and isn’t stopping the flood. Technically, the administration has found ways to streamline the surge, so they are no longer being held in facilities for days and weeks. Instead, they are sent on their way much sooner.
With the current administration not just ignoring but welcoming illegals into the country, the burden of controlling the influx falls to individual states such as Virginia. The Republican governor of Virginia, Gov. Glenn Youngkin, sees the big picture and unavoidable fallout from Biden’s non-existent border policies.
“The ongoing border crisis facing our nation has turned every state into a border state,” Youngkin said in a statement. “As leadership solutions at the federal level fall short, states are answering the call to secure our southern border, reduce the flow of fentanyl, combat human trafficking, and address the humanitarian crisis.”
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster said the move is necessary for the “safety and security of South Carolinians.”
“At the request of Texas Governor Greg Abbott, I have directed the deployment of South Carolina National Guard troops to Texas to help hold the line on the Southern border,” McMaster explained in a statement. “The safety and security of South Carolinians require that we stop the drug cartels, criminals, and terrorists from entering our country to peddle their poison.”
South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem agrees. “The border crisis is growing worse under President Biden’s willful inaction. Across the country, crime rates, drug overdoses, and human trafficking have all skyrocketed because our border remains a warzone.”
In Virginia, Democrats are voicing concerns over sending help to the embattled southern border. They claim that the cost, around $12,4 million, is too high. House Minority Leader Del. Don Scott Jr. has said he finds the cost “disturbing” because the deployment “lacks a specific and prescribed” purpose.
In addition, Democrats seem to believe Youngkin has presidential aspirations and is using this opportunity to launch a bid for 2024, despite any evidence backing this claim. Youngkin’s stated purpose in aiding Texas is to battle the “continued instability along the U.S. border with Mexico, including the increase in the supply of illegal drugs and human trafficking.”
That stated purpose doesn’t stop liberals, like Democratic Virginia State Senator Scott Surwell, from inventing motivations and narratives to explain Youngkin’s decision to aid Texas in the border crisis. “Youngkin for President has officially jumped the shark,” Surwell inexplicably opines. “Our VA National Guard troops shouldn’t be used to further presidential ambitions much less fight a MAGA culture war in Texas of all places — Never thought I would see my state so compromised.”
Of course, the idea of a politician doing something without any personal gain, just because it is the right thing to do, is a foreign concept to Democrats.
For border states like Texas, however, the motivation behind the support isn’t a factor. They seek help in mitigating the damages intentionally caused by Biden’s disastrous immigration policies or lack thereof. And with no help coming from the federal government, states across the US are proving an adage to be true.
If you want something done right, or in this case at all, do it yourself.