Report: White House may force migrants awaiting asylum to stay in Texas

In a revelation likely to upset both Texas’ Republican leaders and immigrant-rights advocates, the Biden Administration is considering a policy that would force migrant families caught illegally crossing the border to remain in Texas, three federal officials told the Los Angeles Times.

The plan under consideration by the White House would force certain migrant families awaiting asylum hearings to remain in the Lone Star State — or possibly other border states — while they play out, according to the report. Authorities would track the families via GPS monitoring bracelets while their requests are processed.

The three officials, who aren’t authorized to speak publicly on the matter, said the plan would make it easier to deport migrant families back to their country of origin by keeping them closer to the border, the Times reported.

More than 91,000 migrant families crossed the southern border in August, an all-time high, according to the Washington Post.

Word of the Biden Administration’s possible “Remain in Texas” plan comes as Gov. Greg Abbott continues to bus thousands of migrants to Democrat-led cities, including Los Angeles, New York City and Washington D.C., as part of his $4.4 billion, taxpayer-funded Operation Lone Star.

This week, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said the wave of migrants being bused in from Texas is jeopardizing the Big Apple.

“This issue will destroy New York City … . All of us are going to be impacted by this,” Adams told reporters on Thursday. “I said it last year when we had 15,000, and I’m telling you now at 110,000. The city we knew, we’re about to lose.”

Abbott’s office, which is already embroiled in a legal battle with the Justice Department over a floating buoy barrier he ordered installed in the Rio Grande to deter migrants, declined comment, saying the governor had addressed the matter in a tweet.

In a post to X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, Abbott said a judge had shut down a previous federal attempt to force migrants to stay in border states.

“We will send Biden the same swift justice,” Abbott wrote. “And, we will add even more buses of migrants to Washington D.C.”

According to the Times report, the proposal, if adopted, is also likely to face heat from immigrant-rights advocates.

Robyn Barnard, director of refugee advocacy at Human Rights First, told the newspaper the policy is misguided, adding that “people should not be punished for their manner of entry to seek asylum.”

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This article appears in Sep 6-19, 2023.