A group of illegal aliens attempting to cross the southern border into Texas on Wednesday could be seen just feet away from congressional Republicans discussing the border crisis.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and 60 other House Republicans visited Eagle Pass, Texas, to discuss the worsening border and illegal immigration crisis. During one leg of the visit, the lawmakers watched in real time as groups of migrants tried to cross into the United States from Mexico via the Rio Grande.
Johnson and Texas Public Safety Director Steve McCraw talked on the U.S. side of the river while illegal aliens waded through the stream in their direction, as seen in footage captured by Fox News. Some migrants yelled and waved at the congressional Republicans while crossing.
House Republicans visited Eagle Pass, a highly trafficked corridor for migrants looking to enter the U.S., to address their concerns that the Biden administration has failed to secure the southern border against a surge of illegal immigration.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection recorded over 2 million migrant encounters during fiscal year 2023, which ended Sept. 30; some 300,000 encounters were tracked in December alone, the highest monthly number ever recorded.
Congress is mulling a border security deal while the Biden administration continues to push for a new funding package for Ukraine and Israel. House Republicans warned the Biden administration that they would not sign off on further funding for Ukraine unless some sort of border package was included.
The White House has blamed House Republicans for the border crisis, claiming that President Joe Biden has offered “record-breaking” border security funding tied to Ukraine, Israel, and Gaza aid in a $106 billion supplemental package.
Biden has scolded Republicans for taking time off over the holidays during a “crisis,” despite the fact that the president himself just returned from a weeklong holiday.
The White House didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
This report originally was published by the Daily Caller News Foundation
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