On Sunday, Joe Biden visited El Paso, Texas, located on the U.S.-Mexico border, for the first time.
Hundreds of illegal immigrants were sleeping on the streets of El Paso and some were committing crimes such as stealing cellphones and charging residents for parking, according to The Daily Caller.
However, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said that the number of illegal immigrants coming to El Paso had decreased from a peak of 2,000 a day in December to approximately 700 a day at present.
Fiscal year 2022 saw the most Customs and Border Protection (CBP) encounters with illegal immigrants in U.S. history, totaling 2.3 million, Daily Caller notes.
After arriving in El Paso, Biden met with Republican Texas Governor Gregg Abbott and toured the Bridge of the Americas Port of Entry with CBP agents, who demonstrated how they detect illegal objects such as people and drugs in vehicles crossing the border.
The president also walked along the border wall separating El Paso and Juarez, Mexico with Border Patrol agents, saying, “They need a lot of resources. We’re going to get it for them.”
Biden also visited the mostly deserted El Paso County Migrant Services Center before departing for the North American Leaders’ Summit in Mexico City.
Abbott has referred to the president’s plan to end the Trump-era COVID border policy known as Title 42, which was upheld by the Supreme Court, as a “reckless decision” and has deployed National Guard soldiers to patrol the border.
Abbott has also transported illegal immigrants throughout the state, including outside Vice President Kamala Harris’ residence.
Biden had previously refused to visit the border, with the White House calling Republican visits “political stunts.”
However, the president announced new border policies on Thursday, including a monthly limit of 30,000 migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela and the creation of a registration app for migrants.
Biden urged migrants not to “just show up to the border” and instead apply for asylum from their home countries.
