Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX) slammed President Joe Biden for his border policy, saying the president needs a “backbone” rather than more legislation to secure the United States-Mexico border.
Abbott spoke from Eagle Pass, Texas, on Sunday and was flanked by several Republican governors who have backed his efforts on immigration. The Texas governor led the calls for Biden to act on border policy, dismissing a proposed Senate bill, the text of which is expected to be released on Sunday.
“All I know is this, and that is the open-border policies that Joe Biden has allowed can no longer be tolerated. He has the ability, as we speak this very moment, to take action to shut down the border and stop illegal immigration,” Abbott said. “Joe Biden does not need more legislative authority. He just needs a backbone to step up and do his job and secure the border.”
Abbott also said that Biden should enforce the laws on the books rather than “being hostile to a state simply trying to enforce the laws of the United States.”
Abbott’s press conference was held after a briefing with 14 other GOP governors on the state of illegal immigration flooding the country. Govs. Bill Lee (R-TN), Brian Kemp (R-GA), Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R-AR), and Greg Gianforte (R-MT) spoke at the press conference, each detailing how their state has been harmed by Biden’s border policies, specifically with illegal drugs entering the country.
“Every state in the country is depending on Joe Biden acting, and if he does not, then we will continue to do so. And we stand with Gov. Abbott and what he is doing,” Kemp said.
Abbott also dismissed allegations that concern over the border is due to a contentious election in November, saying that the “average American is angry.”
“The No. 1 issue in the United States of America is the broken border and the illegal immigration that Joe Biden has created. We don’t have time to wait till November. We got lives on the line every single day,” Abbott said.
“Say that to the parents who have lost a child to deadly fentanyl. There’s a growing number across the country. There are lives at risk every single day … every police officer in every city in our great state understands that they have a daily duty to make sure that their communities are safe, regardless of when elections take place,” he continued. “We as governors have that responsibility to make sure that our states and our country are going to be safe from the illegal immigration crossing.”
Kemp added that several Republican governors have been calling on the president to take action on the border for years.
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“This is not a campaign tactic. This is something that this group and the Republican governors have been concerned with for many, many months and years,” Kemp said.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and other Republicans have been vocal to Biden that he has executive actions he can take on the border. Biden has said he would close the border — if the proposed Senate bill is sent to his desk.
