Florida Governor Ron DeSantis plans to send more than 1,100 law enforcement officers to the Texas-Mexico border, the Republican leader announced Tuesday.
DeSantis, who is expected to run for president any day, announced a similar move in June 2021 with about 100 agents. Trump’s rival has taken credit for sending migrants to other locations, including Martha’s Vineyard, and slammed President Joe Biden for his handling of the border.
“The effects of Biden’s border crisis are being felt by communities across the country, and the federal government’s abdication of duties undermines the sovereignty of our country and the rule of law,” DeSantis said in an online rack on Tuesday.
“At my direction, government agencies, including law enforcement and the Florida National Guard, are being deployed to Texas, including personnel, boats and planes. While Biden ignores the crisis he created, Florida stands ready to help Texas respond to this crisis,” he added.
The statement also included the numbers for who would be sent: 800 Florida National Guard soldiers, 200 Florida Department of Law enforcement officers, 101 state highway patrol troopers, 20 Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission agents, and 20 emergency management personnel.
DeSantis also plans to send five “fixed-wing aircraft with surveillance equipment and downlink capabilities with two aircrew teams, two mobile command vehicles and two command teams, 17 available unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) and support teams, and 10 craft – including airboats, craft.” shallow draft and medium range vessels.”
Texas Governor Greg Abbott also released a statement on Tuesday calling on governors across the country to send agents to the border: “Join the mission to defend our national sovereignty and territorial integrity and send all available law enforcement personnel and resources to the Texas-Mexico border to serve alongside our thousands of Texas National Guard soldiers and Texas Department of Public Safety troopers.
Title 42 — the regulation created during the pandemic that authorizes border agents to refuse asylum seekers at the border to limit the spread of COVID-19 — expired Thursday night. The impact was expected to be drastic to the already troubled immigration system, with Biden approaching a “chaotictransition. But Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told CNN on Sunday that the number of border crossings has decreased by nearly 50% since the expiration date.
Decades old Title 8 was reinstated on Friday after Title 42 expired. Title 8 would deny deported migrants entry to the country for at least five years, with jail time if they enter illegally, CBS reported.
The move follows Florida Republicans passage of a bill allocating $12 million towards DeSantis’ migrant transportation plans earlier this month and aligns with his broader efforts to step up anti-immigration efforts.
Mexico’s president denounced DeSantis’ actions last week.
“Why does [DeSantis] should take advantage of people’s pain, of migrants’ pain, of people’s need for political gain,” Andrés Manuel López Obrador said at a press conference last week, according to politics. “This is immoral. This is political.”
He added: “Now I found out that the governor of Florida – imagine Florida, which is full of migrants – is taking repressive, inhumane measures against migrants in Florida because he is a [presidential] candidate. Can’t he make another proposal to convince people?”
In the United States, Democrats have condemned DeSantis’ attack on immigrants.
“The recent policies of Florida’s Republican-led legislature demonstrate Governor DeSantis’s preference for instilling fear, promoting racial profiling and harming Florida’s economy, rather than the Hispanic population of the state in times of need,” said the president of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. Rep. Nanette Barragán (D-Calif.) and Vice Chair Rep. Darren Soto (D-Fla.) in a joint statement, The hill reported.
“Faith leaders, civil rights groups, chambers of commerce and others have come out against these draconian measures because they will slow economic growth, reduce our workforce, hurt small businesses, drive up inflation and seriously harm our international tourism,” they added. please. .
JS reached out to several immigration advocacy groups for comment.