Texas Border Business
EDINBURG – Hidalgo County Judge Richard F. Cortez issued the following statement in response to Governor Greg Abbott’s June 1 disaster proclamation related to illegal immigration:
“I appreciate Governor Abbott’s concern for the safety of all Texans, and I acknowledge that we are seeing a greater number of immigrants crossing into Texas to either seek asylum, to work or for other purposes. Apparently, Governor Abbott has information that we don’t have. In speaking to local law enforcement, they have not reported levels of criminal activity that would require a disaster proclamation.
I have repeatedly suggested to our federal government to address comprehensive immigration reform because our current laws need change to address what we want and what we don’t want. My greater concern is President Biden’s continued closure of our ports of entry that are having negative economic consequences on our community. Governor Abbott’s pressure against the Biden administration would be much more welcome in the form of calling for these ports of entry to be reopened so that the free flow of trade can begin to return to normal.”
