It is quite telling that Democratic mayors of major cities are so hesitant to place blame for the border crisis where it belongs.
Instead, they would rather do what they always do: Blame Republicans for what Democrats are doing.
The mayors of Chicago and Denver recently put this tactic to work during an interview in which they pretended that the impact of the border crisis on their cities was the fault of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who has been transporting illegal immigrants and asylum seekers Democrat-run areas of the country.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Denver Mayor Mike Johnston said in a Sunday interview with CBS News's Face the Nation that local governments are feeling the pressure of the crisis at the southern border as Abbott continues to bus thousands of migrants to cities across the United States.
"What we have is clearly, clearly an international and federal crisis that local governments are being asked to subsidize and this is unsustainable. None of our local economies are positioned to be able to carry on such a mission," Johnson said.
"Unfortunately, the governor of Texas, Governor Abbott, is determined to continue to sow seeds of chaos. And last night, and several nights before, a number of buses continue to arrive in the city of Chicago, throughout the country, without any coordination," the Chicago mayor added.
More than 14,000 migrants are living in 27 city shelters in Chicago, with over 26,000 immigrants having arrived in the Windy City since August 2022. In Denver, over 35,000 immigrants have arrived within the last year.
The Chicago mayor also argued that Abbott’s actions are “a matter of…our national security.”
Mayor Johnston also chimed in, contending that the shipping of illegals and asylum seekers must be better coordinated.
“We understand the flow is coming,” said Mr. Johnston, the Denver chief executive. “We just want it to be coordinated, and in a humanitarian way, which we think makes it effective for the city and for those newcomers. That means things like arriving 8:00 to 5:00, Monday to Friday, with notice.”
Abbott’s decision to fly and bus border crossers to sanctuary cities has been controversial, attracting criticism primarily from the left. On the other side of the coin, others view it as a direct response to President Joe Biden’s inability, or unwillingness, to confront the problem at the southern border.
This is the point Democrats wish to ignore.
Regardless of what one thinks of the Abbott Express, it is ultimately the federal government’s responsibility to deal with issues pertaining to immigration. Handling this issue should not fall on states and local governments, it should be handled by Congress and the White House.
The United States is currently experiencing a record number of border crossings, which is a testament to America’s flawed immigration system and the failure of both Democrats and Republicans to address the issue.
The bottom line is that the Biden administration has shown a remarkable lack of interest in dealing with the surge at the border. After reversing most of former President Donald Trump’s immigration policies, the new administration failed to replace them with anything resembling solutions.
Yet, Democrats insist on deflecting from the matter, choosing to focus on Gov. Abbott and other Republicans who have sent foreigners to their cities. Not only has this ongoing situation shown that leftists are outright hypocrites when it comes to immigration, but they aren’t even willing to take their own politicians to task when they are clearly mismanaging the disaster at the border.
Even New York City Mayor Eric Adams has criticized the Biden administration for failing to provide solutions to the border issue. Unfortunately, too many of his comrades aren’t as vocal about how the White House’s failures.
