Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas claimed Texas Gov. Greg Abbott “couldn’t be more wrong” about immigration laws and accused him of “trying to wreak havoc” in other states.
Mayorkas sounded off on Sunday during CNN’s “State of the Union” when asked about the Republican governor’s recent comments to anchor Dana Bash.
“I want you to listen to what the Texas Governor Greg Abbott told me on the show about the idea of whether or not legislation is needed. Take a listen,” Bash told the impeached DHS secretary.
“The fact of the matter is there are laws on the books passed by Congress of the United States right now that authorize the executive branch to deny illegal entry,” Abbott said in the clip. “The president does not need new laws. The president needs a backbone to make sure that he enforces the immigration laws that are already on the books.”
Mayorkas was quick to shoot down Abbott’s argument.
“Couldn’t be more wrong, couldn’t be more wrong. As a matter of fact, former President Trump tried to close the border and it was enjoined in the courts and never saw the light of day,” he told Bash.
“This coming from an individual who is purposefully refusing to coordinate, communicate, collaborate with other officials, and trying to wreak havoc in other cities and states across the country. That is not a model of governance and he couldn’t be more wrong,” Mayorkas asserted.
He went on to claim that there are things the government can do and has done to address the border crisis, contending that the number of those crossing into the U.S. illegally in January had dropped by half.
“We encountered a historic number of individuals at the southern border in December of 2023. Mexico had seized its enforcement operations and its enforcement agency had been unfunded,” Mayorkas said.
“President Biden reached out to President López Obrador of Mexico and spoke of the need for enforcement to resume. Then he dispatched Secretary Blinken and me to meet with our Mexican counterparts and echo that important message,” he continued. “Mexico did and the numbers in January of this year dropped more than 50%. So there are things that we can do.”
Mayorkas joined President Joe Biden last week as he visited the southern border and responded to criticism from the union that represents Border Patrol agents.
“The important message that we communicated from Brownsville, Texas, is the fact that Congress needs to act,” he said. “This system has been broken for decades, and we have a bipartisan solution that will deliver much-needed resources and much-needed changes to the broken system.
Until Congress fixes the broken, outdated immigration system, @DHSgov will continue to enforce the law, alongside our local partners. When we all work together, we can effectively safeguard our homeland and better serve the American people.
— Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas (@SecMayorkas) February 29, 2024
The Homeland Security secretary insisted that it is Congress that needs to act in legislating immigration reform He did not elaborate on reports that Biden was considering executive orders to address the crisis at the US-Mexico border.
Social media users weren’t buying what Mayorkas was selling.
The only one wrong in THIS story is the guy who got impeached…
— Dave Roman (@DaveRom86052473) March 4, 2024
This guy has no shame
— Chill (@Chillcatser) March 4, 2024
Mayorkas took down the borders with his pal JB and purposely brought in 14M illegals in 3.2 years and he now is telling us Abbott is trying to wreak havoc on our cities and states, when it was he & JB who took down our borders and flooded us with 14M illegals. WTH am I missing…
— LA Born (@wiseass85735281) March 3, 2024
When people come here illegally (with the FJB admin’s help, support, and approval), they are told they are free to go anywhere in the country. It is very clear who is intentionally wreaking havoc on the USA. The gaslighting is also clear.
— Steven Jacks (@SJackBlack999) March 3, 2024
Unreal that dude can be that evil.
— Keith McMahan (@KeithMcMahan74) March 3, 2024
The smug look on his face every hearing and on MSM Blaming anyone and everyone but himself and Biden for this total chaotic disaster!
The Democrat’s refusal to protect Americans with a secure border and deportation of every illegal border crosser is deliberate destruction.— Dawn G (@dawnegray3) March 3, 2024
Writers and editors can be contacted at [email protected] with feedback, tips, or corrections.
Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida. Powers also contributes to BizPac Review.
Comment
We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.