Republican governors head to the border, push Biden to address crisis

10 Republican governors toured the border between the United States and Mexico Wednesday. Those 10 governors are:

• Texas Gov. Greg Abbott
• Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey
• Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt
• Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts
• Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds
• Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon
• Idaho Gov. Brad Little
• Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte
• Ohio Gov. Mark DeWine
• Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp

According to various press releases, Wednesday’s events included a boat tour of the Rio Grande River with the Texas Department of Public Safety, as well as a news conference in Mission, Texas.

In his press release on the trip, Gov. Little said the point of the tour was for the governors “to witness firsthand the crisis playing out, reveal their proposed solutions, and once again call on President Joe Biden to act to secure the border immediately.”

“Governor Little and 25 other governors recently requested a meeting with President Joe Biden in Washington, D.C., to work together on solutions to the national security and public health crisis created by the unenforced border with Mexico,” the press release said. “The president did not agree to meet with the governors.”

The aforementioned meeting request came via a letter sent to President Biden back in September.

“The months-long surge in illegal crossings has instigated an international humanitarian crisis, spurred a spike in international criminal activity, and opened the floodgates to human traffickers and drug smugglers endangering public health and safety in our states,” the letter said. “A crisis that began at our southern border now extends beyond to every state and requires immediate action before the situation worsens.”

Republican governors from across the country have focused on border issues and criticized Biden for his immigration policies despite Biden retaining many of the border restrictions put in place by former President Donald Trump.

Earlier this week, the White House announced a U.S. delegation, led by Secretary of State Antony Blinken, “will travel to Mexico City to take part in the first U.S.-Mexico High-Level Security Dialogue” on Thursday.

“The Dialogue will build on discussions in previous months on protecting our people, preventing transborder crime, and pursuing criminal networks, while promoting human rights and the rule of law,” the White House said in a press release.