Three busloads of immigrant families arrived from Texas near Vice President Kamala Harris’ home on Christmas Eve in record cold. This was reported by local Washington associations.
The Texan authorities have not confirmed their involvement, but these could be actions in line with previous actions by the governors of US border states, who intended to draw attention to the Biden administration’s immigration policies.
Tatiana Laborde, director general of Samu First Response, says the buses that arrived late on Saturday were carrying around 110-130 people. Some migrants wore only T-shirts despite temperatures hovering around -9 degrees Celsius. It was the coldest Christmas Eve on record in Washington. The members of the associations prepared buses to take the migrants to a church where they then spent the night.
Freezing storm in the USA, the coldest Christmas in New York since 1906: 28 dead and over 3,000 canceled flights
Local organizers had expected the buses to arrive on Sunday, but found out on Saturday that the group would arrive in Washington early, Laborde said. There were also small children on board.
Samu First Response is an organization that works with the City of Washington to assist the thousands of migrants who have arrived in the city from the South in recent months. Most of those arriving aboard the three buses were bound for other destinations and are expected to stay in Washington for only a short time.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s office did not respond to a request for comment Sunday morning. His office said last week that Texas has provided bus rides to more than 15,000 people since April to Washington, New York, Chicago and Philadelphia. Abbott and Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, both Republicans, sharply criticize President Joe Biden for his handling of the US-Mexico border, where thousands of people try to cross the border every day, many seeking asylum. Officials on both sides of the border are seeking help setting up shelters and services for migrants, some of whom are sleeping on the streets.
Migrants, the challenge of the Republican governors: two busloads of illegal refugees in front of Kamala Harris’ house
Leonardo Pini
Republicans argue that Biden and Harris, designated as the US administration’s liaison on the root causes of migration, have eased restrictions that have caused many people to leave their home countries. White House spokesman Abdullah Hasan called the arrival of the buses a “cruel, dangerous and shameful stunt”. “As we’ve said time and time again, we’re willing to work with anyone — Republican or Democrat — on real solutions, like the comprehensive immigration reform and border security measures that President Biden sent Congress on his first day in office. , but these political games lead nowhere and only endanger lives,” Hasan said in a statement today.