
Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced on Friday that he is sending more State Patrol personnel and National Guard troops to Texas to aid its fight against Biden’s border invasion.
The former GOP primary candidate told a press conference that he is sending 76 Florida Highway Patrol officers. They will be joined immediately by 50 National Guardsmen on the southern border.
The Sunshine State already deployed hundreds of troops to assist Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott in recent years. The state is the epicenter for the millions of illegals who have flooded the nation since the Biden administration threw the border open three years ago.
The governor said the state is stepping up to do “what the federal government has refused to do, which is to actually defend this country’s borders.”
DeSantis noted the “astronomical” surge in illegal migration under Biden’s watch and the stalwart effort by Abbott and other Texas officials.
He said the dangerous situation is hardly isolated to Texas and the Southwest. “We think this is an American issue, partially just because we should have a secure country.”
BREAKING: DeSantis Announces New Deployment Of Troops, Highway Patrol Officers To Border. pic.twitter.com/Ub75fDGLIp
— 1776 (@TheWakeninq) February 23, 2024
DeSantis pointed toward the disturbing trend of border crossers from countries that are hostile to U.S. interests. There is a massive ongoing surge of Chinese nationals as well as military-aged males from the Middle East and North Africa.
The Republican cautioned, “I think the chances are that there’s some bad intentions there for some of these people. And it’s a huge, huge problem.”
DeSantis did not mince words when describing the danger these illegal migrants pose. “I do think there is going to be a terrorist attack in this country that people are going to be able to link to the southern border, unfortunately.”
He added, “I wish I didn’t believe that.”
The governor’s stand predictably drew criticism from Democratic quarters. Florida House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell (D) of Tampa urged DeSantis to throw his support behind Biden’s discredited border policy the U.S. House put the brakes on.
Driskell called supporting Texas “a blatant political stunt by Ron DeSantis.”
But another Democrat, Dave Kerner, pushed back at his party’s criticism of the governor. The head of the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles said his state’s efforts are having a positive impact in Texas.
The former lawmaker declared, “They have been in chases. They have been in fights. They have saved lives.”