Texas governor sounds off on guardsman's death, Biden border policies' continued failure
Gov. Greg Abbott joins 'Special Report' with reaction and analysis.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott, R., blamed the Biden administration for the tragic death of a young Texas National Guardsman, while appearing on The Guy Benson Show Monday.
The Fox News Radio host brought up the story of 22-year-old Texas National Guardsman Bishop E. Evans, who drowned last week while trying to rescue two illegal immigrants who were crossing the border from Mexico into the United States.
It was later confirmed that these illegal immigrants were trafficking drugs into the country.
Abbott lamented the soldier’s death as a tragedy while praising Evans as a hero who gave up his life trying to save others.
"They are willing to put their lives on the line even when it looks like somebody else is losing their life. They knowingly put themselves in danger…that's exactly what this National Guard soldier did. So I consider him to be both a Texan and American hero," the governor stated.
The soldier is identified as 22-year-old Bishop E. Evans who was from Arlington, Texas. (Courtesy of Evans' Family)
BRANDON JUDD ON DEATH OF TEXAS SOLDIER AT BORDER: ‘THIS DIDN’T HAVE TO HAPPEN’
"Is it too harsh to say that the Biden administration at least shoulders some responsibility for this young man’s death?" Benson asked his guest.
Abbott confirmed that it was "100% correct," to place fault on President Biden.
"[It's a] travesty that we as a state have to deploy the National Guard to the border," he told Benson, saying, "we have to do so because of the Biden administration’s mishandling of border security."
The governor criticized the Biden administration for rolling back President Trump's border security policies, and "basically decimating ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement)," forcing Texas to handle the border crisis on their own.
"We didn't have to do this under the Trump administration because the Trump administration put four policies into place, that led to the lowest border crossings that we've had in decades," he said, citing Title 42, the Remain in Mexico Policy, the end of "Catch and Release," and building the border wall.
President Biden and Governor Abbott (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images | USA TODAY NETWORK via Reuters Connect | )
"Joe Biden came in, and he eliminated all of those things," Abbott said. "And immediately he sent a message to the entire world that the border of the United States was open and guess what? The world heard it, and the world responded by coming to our border."
The Texas Republican joined a bipartisan call from lawmakers and immigration law enforcement warning that rolling back the Title 42 public health order would cause a historic immigration surge at the southern border.
Title 42, which was put in place in March 2020 to curb immigration due to the coronavirus, is set to expire May 23.
Abbott also called out Biden for the influx of deadly drugs like fentanyl coming across our border.
"In Harris County, which is where Houston is located, there's been reported at least one person dying from fentanyl per day," he announced, calling it "extraordinarily dangerous."
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Benson also brought up how his Republican guest's Democrat opponent, Beto O'Rourke, said on MSNBC that Title 42 should "never" have been implemented.
"It is difficult to envision or imagine a more radical position on immigration," the show host noted.
Beto O'Rourke and Governor Greg Abbott will be facing off again in the Texas 2022 gubernatorial election. (Getty Images)
Abbott claimed there was "no distance between" Biden and O'Rourke on keeping the border open. But, he argued, this position would not be popular with Texans, and particularly Hispanic Texan voters.
"Hispanics who live on border are tired of their communities being overrun by these open border policies," he said.
Hispanic voters have ripped the Biden administration for its lax immigration policies.
A recent Quinnipiac poll found Biden's approval ratings among Hispanics are down to 26%.
"We have a good chance for GOP to win majority of Hispanic voters in Texas," the governor hoped.
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