Biden: Let’s get this bipartisan border security bill passed

BROWNSVILLE, Texas – The visit President Joe Biden made to Brownsville on Thursday, Feb. 29, had a two-fold purpose.

He witnessed first-hand-the work U.S. Border Patrol agents do in what he described as doing an incredible job under increasingly tougher conditions.

Biden reportedly toured a portion of land along the Rio Grande on the east side Brownsville and off Oklahoma Road – an area that has become a hot spot for drug smuggling.

According to sources, he was initially planning to go around the Gateway International Bridge but that was scratched because of the continued immigration feud between the state and the federal governments.

On his trip, the president took the occasion to push for the stalled bi-partisan border security and immigration package – which he described as one of the most important pieces of legislation.

“Folks, it’s real simple. It is time to act,” he repeatedly said. “It is time for us to move on this. We can’t wait any longer.”

Biden said the bill will enable the government to hire 1,500 Border Patrol agents, more immigration judges and asylum officers and to get millions of dollars to buy cutting edge fentanyl detecting machines, among other things.

“Bipartisan border security is a win for the American people, for the people of Brownsville,” the president said as he stood flanked by Brownsville Mayor John Cowen, U.S Congressman Vicente Gonzalez and Alejandro Mayorkas, the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security. “Compromise is a very positive step under critical issues for the country. This bill was in the United States Senate on its way to be passed but it was derailed by some senators.”

Biden said they (the senators) work for the American people, not for the Democratic Party or the Republican Party.

The president and Mayorkas also addressed the Smokehouse Creek fire that has burnt more than 1.1 million acres in the Panhandle – reportedly the largest one ever in the Lone Star State.

Biden said they will provide all the emergency assistance they need, as his administration has done since he took office three years ago, releasing more than $13 billion in disaster relief.

Gonzalez said border security is not a Democratic or Republican issue but an American problem.

For his part, Cowen said they all stand united to secure the border.

”We understand the diversity of thoughts,” he said. “I am proud of our work to help these people who are crossing the border.”

He mentioned the “Brownsville Model” that is being used by the city to effectively and humanely support migrants that enter this country through this city, adding that more than 242,000 migrants have been assisted since 2021.

Cowen also called for passage of the border immigration and security bill.

“We need to pass a bipartisan border bill,” he said. “It’s a big deal to have the President of the United States here.”

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