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U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas criticized Gov. Greg Abbott’s immigration enforcement policies at The Texas Tribune Festival on Friday, highlighting them as unprecedented and sometimes causing havoc.
“This is the first time in my 20 to 22 years of government service that I see a state act in direct contravention of national interests,” Mayorkas told Laura Barrón-López, White House Correspondent for PBS News Hour.
In March 2021, Abbott announced Operation Lone Star, deploying state troopers and National Guard soldiers to arrest migrants suspected of crossing the border illegally along the Texas-Mexico border.
The state has taken various controversial actions, including building a wall near the Rio Grande, resulting in migrant injuries, deploying concertina wire, and charting buses of migrants to sanctuary cities without coordination.
Mayorkas criticized Texas for their approach, questioning if it is to create disorder in receiving communities for political reasons.
Texas also conducted secondary inspections of commercial trucks at the border, causing delays for Mexican truckers and economic repercussions without finding contraband.
The Biden administration has taken legal action against Texas to oppose certain enforcement methods and protect the rights of border crossers seeking asylum.
Despite high migrant arrests over the past year, recent months have seen a decline in apprehensions at the border.
The governor’s office did not respond immediately to requests for comment from The Texas Tribune.
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