Why are the mayors of New York City and Washington DC so angry at Texas’ Governor Abbott?  Both cities have scolded Texas and complained about the mistreatment of migrants who have crossed into Texas illegally.  Both have declared themselves “sanctuary cities.”  That means that anyone arriving who entered the US illegally or claiming “refugee” status is entitled to sanctuary in those cities.  Let us try to understand where their anger is coming from.

First, let’s be clear, Texas Latino Conservatives, the organization I founded last year, enthusiastically supports immigration.  Many of our members are immigrants themselves.  But, to be considered a country, it MUST have controlled borders, and those borders must be clearly defined.  In order to maintain order and to know who is in our country we also must have a system to welcome people who want to enter and become a part of our society.

There is also a place for a limited number of true refugees based on carefully defined criteria. But mainly we want to allow in people who will bring value to our country.  We do not want to bring in people who will become a drain on our citizens’ resources, medical care, education for our children and other benefits offered by a fair society.  And we certainly don’t want people who are criminals, terrorists, or are unidentifiable to our incredibly dedicated and often disrespected members of the Border Patrol.

Second, we feel the pain of those living under tyrannical governments.  People who do not know freedom of speech, thought, the right to make a living — those freedoms that have been the hallmark of the US.  But if everyone living in a cruel society were to come here, more than a billion people would start arriving tomorrow.  As this is not workable or reasonable then limitations must be implemented. As it is, we are the most generous nation on earth by that measure, allowing approximately one million legal immigrants per year. The US has worked and reworked its immigration laws many times to make them the fairest for the most people.  It’s still a horrific problem, and our nation remains too divided politically to achieve meaningful new immigration laws

But the solution is not open borders, allowing every criminal and drug dealer to come into our country.  It is not reasonable to approve “political asylum” because one’s neighbor is a bully. Life is difficult in many of these countries.  TLC is worried about the new administration in Colombia; we fear they will be joining Venezuela in destroying the social fabric of its society.  But we can’t fix it by emptying out their most productive citizens.  They have to fix their own problems.

The obligation of the US government is to its citizens and legal residents.  Why should the government allow tens of thousands, even millions of people to come here to take from our people the benefits they pay for and are entitled to?  Why should a family in the Rio Grande Valley have schools with 60 students in a classroom, half of whom don’t speak any English.  How can their kids learn?  The answer is they can’t learn!

And why should a taxpayer in Eagle Pass have to wait an additional four hours at the health clinic because the line is filled with people here illegally. According to the Border Patrol, we are on pace to top 2 million migrants arrested at the US-Mexico border this fiscal year, which ends in September. That is a new record. Texas is sending many of these migrants, with their signed permission, to places that welcome them, places where apparently there is adequate schooling, health care and homes to take care of them.  What else can a sanctuary city mean?

So, Mr. and Madam Mayor, thank Governor Abbott for helping you fulfill your promise of sanctuary.  Until Governors and Mayors of states far from the border recognize the problem confronting Texas and join Texas in fixing the American borders, we should assume they support the Biden government’s policies of allowing people to enter the US while ignoring all laws Congress has established to control our border.  This is a national problem because of international problems.  We can only fix our part of the problem.

According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, “…over 376,000 criminal aliens have been booked into local Texas jails between June 1, 2011, and July 31, 2022, of which over 259,000 were classified as illegal aliens by DHS.  Think about the victims of those crimes, and how many crimes each of the criminals probably committed before getting caught and punished.

We can’t fix other countries by making life more difficult for the people who make America great and by taking away their benefits.  There are tough solutions to the misery in other countries, but the American people cannot be responsible for the whole world.  When cruel leaders like Venezuela’s Maduro or Cuba’s Castro clique destroy a country, we can offer an example of how to govern a country. Maybe not these days, but in general. We cannot allow every freedom desiring person refuge from tyrannical governments.  They must solve their own problems and I am confident the right leaders in Washington will support those efforts throughout this hemisphere and throughout the planet.