by Jason Hopkins
President Donald Trump compared Mexican and Central American governments to Democrats working in Washington, D.C., in a tweet Tuesday morning.
“After many years (decades), Mexico is apprehending large numbers of people at their Southern Border, mostly from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. They have ALL been taking U.S. money for years, and doing ABSOLUTELY NOTHING for us, just like the Democrats in Congress!” the president tweeted.
After many years (decades), Mexico is apprehending large numbers of people at their Southern Border, mostly from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. They have ALL been taking U.S. money for years, and doing ABSOLUTELY NOTHING for us, just like the Democrats in Congress!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 2, 2019
The statements come as a massive number of illegal migrants are arriving on the U.S.-Mexico border. A record amount of apprehensions took place in March, with Customs and Border Protection catching or stopping 3,974 illegal migrants on March 19, the highest number since Trump entered office. Nearly 100,000 apprehensions are estimated to have taken place in March, which would be the highest in over a decade.
Most of these illegal migrants hail from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, making the situation more difficult for law enforcement officials. These immigrants cannot be quickly deported because they are from noncontiguous countries — countries other than Mexico or Canada. The situation has left overwhelmed detainment centers stretched thin and forced to release illegal migrants by the thousands.
The Trump administration has pushed numerous measures in an effort to alleviate the situation. Beyond asking for billions more in funding for wall construction, the Trump administration is attempting to punish these Central American countries by withholding millions in financial aid and asking Congress to pass legislative fixes to immigration laws.
All of these measures have been met with pushback from Democrats, earning ire from the Oval Office. Trump, later on Tuesday, quoted the vice president of the National Border Patrol Council, who has been extremely critical of the Democratic Party.
“I haven’t seen any Democrats down here at the Border working with us or asking to speak to any of us. They have an open invitation. We are getting overrun, our facilities are overcapacity. We are at an emergency crisis.” Art Del Cueto, National Border Patrol Council.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 2, 2019
The president has also put heavy pressure on Mexico, calling out its government for allowing Central American migrants to traverse through the country. Trump has repeatedly threatened to shut the entire border down unless the Mexican government rectifies the situation.
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Jason Hopkins is a reporter for the Daily Caller News Foundation. Follow Jason on Twitter.
Photo “Donald Trump” by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. CC BY 2.0.
