Texas Gov. Greg Abbott criticized New York City Mayor Eric Adams over the ticketing of buses carrying migrants from his state to the so-called sanctuary city, following a state of emergency declaration in the Big Apple amid the influx.
The New York Police Department was seen over the weekend pulling over buses near the Port Authority that had dropped of dozens of migrants. The officers reportedly searched each bus for possible infractions, including tire treads, fluid levels and even windshield wiper placement, the New York Post reported
Sources told the Post the inspections were part of a ploy to find excuses to take the buses off the road and complicate the transportation of migrants caught illegally crossing the southern border into New York.
A handful of drivers were issued tickets, the paper reported.
“This is another pathetic ply by Mayor Adams to stop Texas from busing migrants to his self-declared sanctuary city,” a spokesperson for Abbott’s office told Fox News. “Each bus used by the State of Texas for this busing mission undergoes thorough Texas Department of Public Safety Commercial Vehicle inspections before departing for sanctuary cities.”
Abbott, a Republican, has bused thousands of migrants to New York, Washington D.C., and Chicago, an effort intended to bring attention to the overwhelming of resources in border towns from Democratic-run cities.
But the bussing is a bipartisan effort, with the Democratic mayor of El Paso, Texas, sending more migrants to New York City than Abbott.
Last week, Adams declared a state of emergency to help respond to the influx of migrants crisis, which he said will cost the city $1 billion this fiscal year.
“The mayor is desperate,” one source said told the newspaper. “Are we a sanctuary city or not?”
In response to the migrants, Adams suggested that more shelters may need to be built, in addition to the one going up in Randalls Island. The mayor has used 42 hotels to house migrants, and has even worked on a deal with Norwegian Cruise Lines for more housing.
Abbott’s spokesperson said Adams should stop “selectively attacking Texas’ busing operation” and call on President Biden “to take immediate action to secure the border – something the President continues failing to do.”
