Gov. Abbott activates ‘Texas Tactical Border Force’

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott speaks at a news conference on October 17, 2022 in Beaumont, Texas. Abbott met with state and local law enforcement to discuss measures in addressing the growing problem of fentanyl in the state. In September, the governor directed the state police through executive order to boost efforts at combating Mexican drug cartels, which he blames for transporting millions of doses of the opioid into Texas. (Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
(Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

OAN’s Geraldyn Berry
12:58 PM – Monday, May 8, 2023

Prior to the termination of the Title 42 public health order, which helped prevent the entry of migrants into the United States, Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced the creation of a new Texas Tactical Border Force on Monday.

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Abbott (R-Texas) spoke during a press conference from the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, joined by Texas Border Czar Mike Banks, Texas National Guard Adjunct General Thomas Suelzer, and Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steve McCraw. 

The governor claimed that the president is “laying down a welcome mat to people across the entire world saying that the United States border is wide open.” This will lead to an incredible amount of people coming across the border illegally, according to Abbott.

“According to the Biden administration itself, they anticipate about 13,000 people coming across the border illegally every single day,” Abbott said. “If you extend that out over the course of a year, it means it will be about 4,700,000 people coming across the border a year. That will mean there will be more people coming across the border illegally than there are residents of the massive city of Chicago.”

On May 11th, Title 42, a health statute that was enacted during the COVID-19 outbreak, will no longer be used to regulate migration at the U.S.-Mexico border. Instead, the administration will return to Title 8, the country’s immigration statute. In April, the Biden Administration approved sending 1,500 U.S. troops to the border.

Thus, the Republican announced that in response to “Joe Biden’s reckless border policies,” the Texas National Guard will be loading Black Hawk helicopters and C-130s to deploy specially-trained National Guard members to “hotspots along the border to intercept, to repel and to bring back migrants who are trying to enter Texas illegally.

The Texas National Guard stated in a statement that it activated 545 extra military members at various sites around the state on Monday to “reinforce the border mission in anticipation of the end of Title 42 immigration restrictions.”

“These additional forces will bolster the thousands of Texas National Guard service members already assisting local and state law enforcement agencies to secure the border; stop the smuggling of drugs, weapons and people into Texas; and prevent, detect, and interdict transnational criminal behavior between the ports of entry,” the Texas National Guard said in a statement on Monday. “We have expanded our capabilities to include boat teams that patrol hundreds of river miles, drones and helicopters that detect illicit activity from the air, and brush teams, security points and roving patrols that block and interdict illegal smuggling (drugs, weapons and people) into Texas.”

On May 11th, Title 42, the health statute enacted during the COVID-19 outbreak, will no longer be used to regulate migration at the United States-Mexico border. Instead, the administration will return to Title 8, the country’s immigration statute.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Chief Officer Troy Miller, had recently informed Congress that his department is ready for up to 10,000 migrants to cross the southern border each day, once Title 42 expires, which would nearly triple the daily average in March. Other internal government predictions indicate that, in the absence of substantial policy changes, daily migrant numbers might climb to between 11,000 and 13,000 people.

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