Appearing on Fox News Sunday, Texas Governor Greg Abbott continued a back-and-forth spat with New York City Mayor Eric Adams over Abbott’s busing of migrants from the Lone Star State to the Big Apple, which is a sanctuary city.
On Thursday, Adams, a Democrat, offered the Republican governor a complimentary stay at a migrant shelter during his trip to headline the New York Republican Party’s annual gala.
On Sunday, Abbott responded by calling Adams’ invitation a “gimmick” and said he should focus on his own city. The governor also insisted that President Joe Biden‘s policies forced his hand to bus migrants to New York and other sanctuary cities.
“Our country is being invaded in ways that put our country at risk because the political games that Joe Biden has played,” Abbott said. “And Mayor Adams is just aiding and abetting that by having a sanctuary city status…welcoming anybody from across the world to live there and stay there, on the bill of New York.”
He added: “What Mayor Adams needs to do is stop talking boldly about immigration and the migrants Texas is sending there and step up and do his own job.”
The Context:
Texas has faced the brunt of the massive surge of migrants coming in illegally through the U.S.-Mexico border in recent years. Abbott has used deterrence tactics, such as putting razor wire along the southern border, and has bused migrants to sanctuary cities across the country.
Adams, who like mayors in Chicago and Denver, has requested more assistance from the federal government and has said the influx of migrants could “destroy” his city. Meanwhile, he has consistently feuded with Abbott about the migrant situation.
“I’m going to offer him a stay in one of the HERRCs so he can see what he has created and understand how we are treating people with the dignity and respect that he should have shown as well,” Adams said at a press conference when asked about Abbott’s trip to the city.
“HERRCs,” refers to New York City’s humanitarian emergency response and relief centers, which are used to house migrants who arrive in the city.
What We Know:
New York City has taken in more than 175,000 migrants and spent upward of $1.45 billion just in fiscal year 2023 to shelter, feed and provide services to migrants. The city has said there is “no end in sight” to the copious numbers of migrants and projects that an extended timeline of the current rate of migration means a cost to the city of approximately $12 billion by the 2025 fiscal year.
After nearly two years of fundraising to offset the cost of Abbott’s busing program, which is largely paid for by taxpayers, CNN reported on Friday that Abbott raised around $550,000, at most, according to state records. This is only a drop in the bucket compared to the estimated $150 million it costs to run the program.
In January, Abbott announced that over 100,000 migrants had been bused to sanctuary cities including New York City, Chicago, Denver, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, and Los Angeles dating back to April 2022. Based on the payments made to private contractors so far, which CNN obtained through public records, it has cost roughly $1,500 to bus each migrant out of Texas.
Update 4/7/24, 10:38 a.m.: This story has been updated with more information.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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