U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas described Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s efforts to bus illegal aliens to Democrat cities as a “remarkable failure” in governance—prompting Abbott to clap back on social media Wednesday.
“We have one governor, in the state of Texas, who is refusing to cooperate with other governors and other local officials,” Mayorkas stated in an interview on MSNBC.
“And it’s a remarkable failure of governance to refuse to cooperate with one’s fellow local and state officials,” he continued.
Mayorkas also blamed the vast number of illegal crossings on climate change in the interview.
“And migration, the challenge of displaced people, is a subject that comes up in every single conversation,” he said. “We have the effects of climate change, poverty, increasing levels of authoritarianism. The very many challenges that are at the root cause of the displacement of people around the world.”
Shortly after the interview, Abbott blasted Mayorkas on social media. “Climate change?” he said in an X post. “Mayorkas is pathetic. The REAL reason illegal immigration records are being set is because Biden refuses to enforce immigration laws.”
Abbott then reinforced his commitment to ensuring Texas border security. “We will send more buses and planes. We will continue building the razor wire walls that Biden wants to tear down.”
Mayorkas’ attacks stem from Abbott’s busing of illegal aliens to Democrat-led “sanctuary” cities around the country as President Joe Biden’s border crisis continues to worsen.
As of December 29, Abbott’s official numbers of illegal aliens bused to Democrat cities include over 12,500 to Washington, D.C. since April 2022, over 33,600 to New York City since August 2022, over 28,000 to Chicago since August 2022, over 3,400 to Philadelphia since November 2022, over 13,800 to Denver since May 2023, and over 1,300 to Los Angeles since June 2023.
Wednesday also saw yet another lawsuit against the state of Texas from the Biden administration in response to Senate Bill 4—which is set to take effect in March this year and would provide authority to law enforcement to arrest illegal aliens and offer them the option of leaving the country or be prosecuted for illegal entry into the state.
Abbott responded again on X to both the Biden administration and Mayorkas. “Mayorkas blames climate change for illegal immigration, not Joe Biden’s open border policies,” he said.
“Biden is now suing Texas AGAIN for stepping up to stop illegal immigration,” Abbott continued. “Time for the Biden Administration to stop the lawsuits and start to enforce federal immigration laws.”
Texas Scorecard reached out to Abbott’s office for comment but has yet to receive a response.
