The number of illegal crossings at the Texas-Mexico border has reportedly decreased by nearly 80%, even as the United States as a whole continues to deal with a steady stream of illegal aliens entering the country from the southern border.
In a press release published on Friday, Gov. Greg Abbott’s office noted that under Operation Lone Star, Texas’ multi-agency initiative to manage the ongoing illegal immigration crisis at the southern border, the state has seen a dramatic reduction in illegal crossings.
Abbott posted the impact findings on social media earlier in the week, citing Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steve McCraw’s testimony in front of the Texas Senate Committee on Border Security. He said that the decrease has come as a result of Texas’ efforts, which the federal government has resisted.
“Texas has seen a 74% decrease in illegal crossings because of Operation Lone Star,” Abbott posted on X.
Since President Joe Biden took office in 2021, U.S. Customs and Border Protection reported more than 8.1 million encounters with illegal aliens along the southern border, prompting Texas to take matters into its own hands.
“Since the launch of Operation Lone Star, the multi-agency effort has led to over 513,700 illegal immigrant apprehensions and more than 44,000 criminal arrests, with more than 38,600 felony charges,” the governor’s press release reads. “In the fight against the fentanyl crisis, Texas law enforcement has seized over 489 million lethal doses of fentanyl, enough to kill every man, woman, and child in the United States and Mexico combined during this border mission.”
Texas has attempted to manage the crisis at the border in various ways, including a program that buses illegal aliens to sanctuary cities across the country.
Since the busing program began in April 2022, Texas has bused more than 119,000 illegal aliens to six different sanctuary cities, according to the press release.
Although Abbott has applauded the work done through the busing program, reporting has indicated that the effort has cost taxpayers roughly $148 million as of January 24, 2024, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
Additionally, New York City has fought back against the program, filing a lawsuit against 17 charter bus and transportation companies that have been assisting the Lone Star State in the transportation of illegal aliens.
As reported by DX, this lawsuit names multiple companies based in North Texas as defendants, including two companies with offices in Dallas.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams claimed in a statement about the lawsuit that “Abbott has admitted to facilitating the transport,” alleging that the busing scheme violated the law.
