Laredo Democratic Mayor Pete Saenz spoke out against President Joe Biden’s open border policies, arguing that at least Trump’s policies were working to protect his community from illegal immigrants.
“We need to truly secure the border,” Saenz said, according to the Washington Free Beacon.
“It was working under Trump, call it whatever you want to call it, but it was working.”
Defunding Border Patrol?
“We’re spending billions of dollars on alternative things but immigration isn’t given priority. Border Patrol isn’t being funded to the extent that Border Patrol has to be funded,” Saenz added in the interview.
“Their workload has increased to three times or four, and yet they’re not funded. So, that kind of leads me to think the Democrats have the same mentality [toward the Border Patrol] as defunding law enforcement generally,” the mayor said.
The Hispanic mayor’s words reveal that his community, which is predominantly Hispanic, does not align with the Biden border agenda. The actions ultimately hurt the legal immigration process and place a strain on border communities overwhelmed by the number of people passing through from the south that border patrol cannot control.
Remain in Mexico
Saenz offered a practical response to the reality of illegal immigration under Biden.
“The key, ultimately, is removing the incentive to come to the border and file for asylum. I believe in the asylum process. It needs to be followed or changed.
“If we don’t like the way people are attempting to come, we can have them apply remotely or from either the country of origin or some other place that is close to the country of origin,” Saenz said.
“No person wants to spend their last penny giving it to the cartels, then risking life and limb travel to try and get all the way to the border. And then there’s still the uncertainty that they may not even be granted asylum. At some point, they’ll be fugitives.”
Saenz does not believe a border wall is a practical response, but agreed the Remain in Mexico policy worked to keep border towns like his from becoming overwhelmed.
Ultimately, the issue is incentive. The Biden administration’s policies have increased the incentive for illegal immigrants, as most know they will not be deported or arrested. Changing this, according to the mayor, is key to ending the border crisis.
The post Democratic mayor of border town urges return to Trump’s policies first appeared on Conservative Institute.
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