A bus from Texas arrived in Washington, D.C. Wednesday morning, transporting dozens of illegal immigrants as part of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s new plan to counter federal immigration policies during an ongoing border crisis.
Abbott announced last week that he was directing the Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) to transport migrants released from federal custody in Texas to the nation’s capital and other locations outside his state.
The bus pulled up at approximately 8 a.m. local time, blocks away from the U.S. Capitol building. Individuals disembarked one by one except for family units who exited together. They checked in with officials and had wristbands they were wearing cut off before being told they could go.
According to TDEM, Abbott’s plan is already working. The agency told Fox News on Monday that many of the communities that originally reached out for support – from the Rio Grande Valley to Terrell County – say the federal government stopped dropping immigrants in their towns since Abbott’s announcement on April 6.
Some had questioned whether Abbott’s plan to bus migrants was genuine. The White House dismissed it as a “publicity stunt.” Even Texas state Rep. Matt Schaefer, a Republican, called it a “gimmick.”