Texas governor gets more aggressive at border

It was the latest attempt by the red-state governor to provoke progressive California on immigration.

A bus with 36 migrants arrived in Los Angeles last week from Texas as part of Governor Greg Abbott's continuing effort to make the border issue a major item on his political agenda.

The bus that arrived on July 27 carried 23 adults and 13 children, ranging in age from 2 to 54, and bringing the total number of migrants bused to Los Angeles to more than 200.

In a tweet last month, Abbott touted his "achievement" since he began the migrant busing program last year: more than 10,300 to Washington DC; over 9,500 to New York City; over 3,600 to Chicago; over 1,800 to Philadelphia; and over 250 to Denver — totaling more than 25,000.

In mid-June, Abbott made Los Angeles a new destination after having sent some migrants to Denver. All six buses to California have originated from the same Texas border city, Brownsville. officials said.

Earlier in June, the state of Florida picked up three dozen migrants in Texas and sent them by private jet to California's capital, catching shelters and aid workers in Sacramento by surprise.

Abbott and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis have defended their migrant relocation programs by saying border towns have become overwhelmed by new arrivals. They have also used them to taunt blue states that have enacted policies extending services and protections.

California and cities throughout the state have passed "sanctuary" laws shielding immigrants from deportation, though asylum-seekers who have been processed and cleared by federal authorities have at least temporary legal status.

"President Biden abandoned his constitutional duty to secure the border. Texas will defend our sovereign authority to respond to the crisis Biden's open border policies created. Texas is the only government authority stopping illegal border crossings," Abbot wrote on X, formerly Twitter, to promote his Operation Lone Star program.

According to data from US Customs and Border Protection, in June, encounters of illegal crossings at the US-Mexico border totaled 144,571 — a more than 30 percent drop from May or from the same month a year ago.

While Abbott said his action is a protest to Biden's border policy and a response to a border crisis, Angelica Salas, the executive director of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHRILA), called his action "outrageous, if not criminal".

"We condemn the dehumanization of migrants and refugees anywhere and we remind Governor Abbott that every life is precious and protected under the United Nations' Human Rights Charter," she said in a recent statement.

"Operation Lone Star is a questionable initiative fueled by xenophobia and void of human decency. But the line has been crossed long ago by this governor with the most recent example being the busing of thousands of asylum seekers to various other states, including Los Angeles, California."

According to a statement from Abbott's office, the operation has led to "over 397,900 illegal immigrant apprehensions and more than 31,800 criminal arrests, with more than 29,300 felony charges reported", plus seizure of more than 422 million doses of fentanyl.

While Texas can't enforce federal immigration laws, Abbott skirted the restriction by ordering state police to jail migrants suspected of illegally crossing the border on misdemeanor trespassing charges.

To enforce that policy, the state cleared out two state prisons housing convicted felons to detain the misdemeanor defendants who have yet to be convicted of any crime. As a result, thousands of migrants caught on private properties at the border were entered into Texas' new criminal justice system specifically erected for them.

Prior to July this year, the policy targeted only single adult males while the state troopers turned women and families over to the US Border Patrol.

However, a lawsuit alleging the practice is discriminatory based on gender won in court last September. Since then, many similar suits have been filed in courts.

In response, the Texas Department of Public Safety changed tactics and told the troopers in December to begin arresting single female migrants. Minors, people over 65 years old and families are still left alone.

Texas recently cleared out a state prison in Edinburg to make room for roughly 200 female migrants. By July 25, about 25 women were being held on trespassing charge.