Border at issue as Valley reps respond to Biden’s State of the Union address

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The Rio Grande Valley congressional delegation’s response to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address reveals that Republican and Democratic representatives agree on one point: border security must be addressed.

However, for U.S. Reps. Monica De La Cruz, R-McAllen, and Vicente Gonzalez, D-Brownsville, the agreement stops there with both politicians painting a much different picture on who is to blame.

For Gonzalez, House Republicans are to blame while De La Cruz places Biden at fault.

“Moreover, our border’s safety is vital to not only South Texas, but to the country as a whole,” Gonzalez said in a statement issued following Biden’s address. “House Republicans must stop playing games with our national security and start delivering real solutions.”

De La Cruz, who provided a nationally televised response in Spanish to Biden’s address, said Biden is at fault because he stopped “enforcing our laws,” a reference to when the president took office and rolled back former president and presidential candidate Donald Trump’s hard-line border policies on immigration and security.

“You don’t have to look any further than the border to see the disaster that Biden has caused,” De La Cruz said in her response, which she also said is the first ever delivered on a national level by a Valley representative. “At the beginning of his term, he stopped enforcing our laws. And now, the cartels and many criminals freely enter our country.”

It should be noted that communities in the Valley are consistently ranked among the safest in Texas and the United States.

For Gonzalez, he said he is in search of real solutions, which is why he hosted Biden last week in Brownsville where the president met with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Border Patrol and local leaders who have managed migrant surges for years.

“I have been critical of both President Trump and President Biden for not doing enough to strengthen our border’s security and fix our broken immigration system,” Gonzalez said. “We are at a critical point, and we must quickly pass the Senate Bipartisan Border Package so that our border personnel have the necessary tools to handle future migrant surges in a safe and humane manner.”

De La Cruz, meanwhile, lambasted Biden over drug trafficking.

“As a mother of two, it pains me to see how drugs entering through the border have killed thousands of young people,” De La Cruz said. “The president says his policies are humane, but what is humane about allowing someone to kill our people?”

She also criticized Biden over the economy and inflation, said violence is rising and that Biden supports defunding police.

She also said she has hope, and that everything is possible in America.

“Our country can be great again if we return to our values, like opportunity and faith,” she said.

Gonzalez, in his remarks, praised the American Rescue Plan Act and the Inflation Reduction Act, crediting the legislation with reducing out-of-pocket prescription drug costs.

Gonzalez also said Biden’s address promised to build on past success for middle class America.

“South Texans are counting on him to keep his word and I stand ready to work with the President and my colleagues to deliver,” Gonzalez said.

ELECTION OPPONENTS

Both Gonzalez and De La Cruz secured victory in their respective primaries and the stage has been set for competitive rematches in both of their districts.

Republican Mayra Flores is again set to face off against Gonzalez while De La Cruz will again compete with Democrat Michelle Vallejo.

On Thursday night, Vallejo released remarks responding to De La Cruz’s Spanish language response on behalf of the Republic Party.

“Tonight, we heard the same tired attacks from Monica De La Cruz. No solutions, just empty rhetoric,” Vallejo said.

She attacked her opponent, saying De La Cruz has worked to undermine Social Security and Medicare.

Vallejo also criticized De La Cruz for supporting Texas’ abortion ban, which has resulted in women leaving Texas to get “life-saving medical care.”

“And when a bipartisan deal was on the table to send billions to secure the border and provide relief to South Texas communities, Monica turned her back on our Border Patrol agents, local officials, and community leaders who supported the compromise, putting politics ahead of helping our people, again,” Vallejo said.

Flores, meanwhile, issued a two-line statement on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“Biden’s SOTU was an angry, bitter, left-wing rant that offered no solutions for the American people—and no responsibility for his failures,” the post read. “Border security. Lower costs. Energy independence. Safer communities. Better schools. That’s the American Dream I am fighting for in TX-34.”

SPECIAL GUESTS

Both De La Cruz and Gonzalez also invited guests from the Valley to watch the State of the Union Address with them, a time-honored tradition.

De La Cruz invited Dr. Jim Garza, an Edinburg-based OB/GYN.

“As a doctor, entrepreneur, and a friend to many, Dr. Jim Garza has made a wonderful impact on the RGV,” De La Cruz said. “I am pleased to welcome Dr. Garza to Washington for this event, where he can share his expertise with me and my colleagues and he can also hear directly from our nation’s leaders. His presence in Washington brings valuable insight into the lack of women’s health resources, like OB/GYNs, in rural parts of my district.”

Garza has a private practice at Renaissance Women’s Healthcare in Edinburg.

Gonzalez invited Weslaco personal injury attorney Ezequiel Reyna Jr. to the State of the Union address.

He founded the Ezequiel Reyna Law Office and grew up as the seventh child of a family of migrants, according to the bio on his law firm’s website.

“I’m proud to have Ezeuiel Reyna of Weslaco join me tonight for the State of the Union,” Gonzalez wrote on social media. “From farm worker to lawyer, a great South Texas community advocate.”

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