Texas Border Business
EDINBURG – As the May 23 deadline to end Title 42 approaches, Hidalgo County Judge Richard F. Cortez sent a letter to President Joe Biden inviting him to visit Hidalgo County before the Administration “makes any substantial changes to current border policy.”
The 2-page letter, dated May 2, 2022, explains to the President that Hidalgo County is situated “at unique crossroads of national security and economic considerations.” In detailing that Hidalgo County was impacted particularly hard by COVID-19, Cortez tells the President of his concerns about the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s April 1, 2022, determination that Title 42 was no longer necessary.
“President Biden, as a public servant in a border community I must implore you to visit our region before the existing Order is suspended,” Cortez wrote.
Cortez acknowledged that, based on the experience before Title 42 was implemented, any surge in immigration coming from Mexico will ultimately impact the entire country, but said the impact on border communities will be felt immediately.
“We bear the responsibility of welcoming, treating, and caring for these migrants even as we struggle to care for the less fortunate in our community,” Cortez wrote. Historically, before Title 42 was implemented, he wrote, “the negative consequences are expected to be real and immediate for American Citizens living in border communities across the Southwest.”
Read a copy Judge Cortez’s Letter Below:
