Texas Gov. Abbott blames Biden reversal of Trump policies for 'self-inflicted' migrant surge at border

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Texas Governor: Biden border crisis a 'self inflicted wound'

Gov. Abbott joins 'America Reports' live from the Southern border

Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott blamed the Biden administration for what he called a "self-inflicted" influx of migrants at the southern border by reversing the immigration policies implemented under former President Donald Trump.

During a visit to the border on Tuesday, Abbott told "America Reports" co-hosts Sandra Smith and John Roberts that the president knew "exactly what was going to happen," and accused the White House of refusing to acknowledge responsibility for the crisis.

"It is a self-inflicted wound because going back to what the Border Patrol officers told me themselves, they informed the Biden administration about this all along, and the Biden administration has known exactly what was going to happen if they refuse to continue to implement the policies that were previously in place," Abbott said.

The governor blamed the overwhelming surge at the border on Biden's rollback of Trump's "Remain in Mexico" policy, which returns migrants claiming asylum at the border to Mexico to await their hearings.

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"These two policy changes is what has led to the influx that we’ve seen," Abbott argued. "One is the elimination of the ‘Remain in Mexico’ protocol, and that is what suddenly allowed so many people to come back in. The other is the policy of, if people do come across the border, they will be returned to whatever country they came from."

Abbott quoted troubling numbers from Border Patrol officials, who claim to have already apprehended more migrants this year than in all of 2020.

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According to their estimate, 90,000 people were apprehended last year in the Rio Grande sector alone, Abbott said. In the first three months of 2021, nearly 108,000 people have been apprehended in the sector.

Abbott's warning comes as White House press secretary Jen Psaki maintained Tuesday that a "majority" of people who arrive at the border are turned away, repeating past statements meant to assure that a more lax border policy was not allowing free entry to migrants.

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Psaki was again reluctant to label the situation at the border as a "crisis," but Abbott warned that unless Biden implements aggressive changes and acknowledges the critical nature of the situation, the country is facing a "total disaster" in the coming months.

"Remember, this is a low-number month of the year. The people coming across the border will increase dramatically," he said. "We’re probably on scale to have maybe up to a million people cross our border, the Texas border, this year. So this is going to be a turn into a total disaster if the Biden administration does not step up and begin implementing stronger measures."