Over 10,000 migrants, mostly Haitian, are packed under an overpass bridge in Del Rio, Texas, prompting the state’s governor to shut down six entry points along the border. Critics are slamming the Biden administration for inaction.
Additionally, the FAA has blocked news drones from flying over the area, which has led to accusations that the Biden administration is trying to suppress the story.
Over 10,000 illegal migrants overwhelm Texas
Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) shut down six ports of entry from Mexico into the United States amid a massive surge in illegal migrants, mostly Haitian, crossing over the border, which more than doubled overnight.
Border agents struggle to keep up with the surge in the area, according to two senior Department of Homeland Security officials, NBC reported. According to officials, many of the Haitian migrants did not come from the island directly, but have been living in South America and entered through common smuggling routes used by a Mexican cartel.
“The sheer negligence of the Biden Administration to do their job and secure the border is appalling,” Governor Abbott said in a statement. “I have directed the Department of Public Safety and the Texas National Guard to surge personnel and vehicles to shut down six points of entry along the southern border to stop these caravans from overrunning our state.”
“The border crisis is so dire that the U.S. Customs and Border Protection is requesting our help as their agents are overwhelmed by the chaos,” Abbott continued. “Unlike President Biden, the State of Texas remains committed to securing our border and protecting Americans.”
Sen. Cruz: Biden could “end this tomorrow by simply following the law”
On Thursday afternoon, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) made a trip to Del Rio, Texas, and captured footage of the 10,000 illegal aliens and posted it online. Cruz called the situation a “man-made disaster” and the “result of political decisions,” the Daily Wire reported.
Cruz says situation inhumane
“When you have open borders, this is what you get,” Cruz concluded. “This is wrong. This is not humane. This is not compassionate. This is lawless, and it is inviting suffering. This needs to end.”
Did the Biden administration purposely ground news drones to suppress the story?
Fox was one of the first networks to release video footage and report on the doubling of migrants under the Texas Bridge. Immediately following those reports, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) instituted a temporary flight restriction (TFR), a two-week flight restriction over the city of Del Rio, Texas, late Thursday, preventing Fox from operating a drone, the New York Post reported.
Fox correspondent Bill Melugin called the restriction “a little bit curious” implying the FAA and the Biden administration were trying to limit the news coming out of the area.
“I just want to point out, Fox News has been at the border for the better part of seven months now,” Melugin said. “We’ve been using the drone the entire time. It’s never been an issue. All of a sudden, the last 24 hours, we start showing these images at this bridge and a TFR goes up. We can no longer fly.”
The FAA responded by saying the flight restriction was issued for “special security reasons.”
“The Border Patrol requested the temporary flight restriction due to drones interfering with law enforcement flights on the border,” the FAA said in a statement. “As with any temporary flight restriction, media is able to call the FAA to make requests to operate in the area.”
Politicians sound off on FAA TFR
“What a coincidence,” Sen. Tom Cotton (R-TN) tweeted. “The FAA better be ready to explain to Congress why they’re suddenly blocking the media from covering Biden’s border crisis.”
“The FAA must clearly spell out the ‘security’ issue of this TFR to the American people,” Chad Wolf, former Acting DHS Secretary, tweeted. “This looks like a political issue rather than a security issue. I’m guessing the DHS Secretary will receive questions next week during Congressional testimony.”
Rep. Dan Bishop (R-NC) tweeted: “Rather than secure the border, the Biden Admin wants to censor Fox News for covering his abject failure.”
