Busloads of migrants dropped off near US VP Kamala Harris’ home amid record freeze
- More than 100 people, some dressed only in T-shirts, arrived from Texas on Christmas Eve in temperatures hovering around -9 degrees Celsius
- The bus drop-offs are in line with previous actions by border-state governors calling attention to the Biden administration’s immigration policies
Three buses of recent migrant families arrived from Texas near the home of US Vice-President Kamala Harris in record-setting cold on Christmas Eve.
Texas authorities have not confirmed their involvement, but the bus drop-offs are in line with previous actions by border-state governors calling attention to the Biden administration’s immigration policies.
The buses that arrived late Saturday outside the vice-president’s residence were carrying around 110 to 130 people, according to Tatiana Laborde, managing director of SAMU First Response, a relief agency hired by the city of Washington to serve thousands of migrants that have been dropped off in recent months.
Local organisers had expected the buses to arrive on Sunday but found out on Saturday that the group would get to Washington early, Laborde said. The people on board included young children.
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Some were wearing T-shirts despite temperatures hovering around 15 degrees Fahrenheit (-9 degrees Celsius). It was the coldest Christmas Eve on record for Washington, according to The Washington Post.
Laborde said employees had blankets ready for the people who arrived on Christmas Eve and moved them quickly onto waiting buses for a ride to an area church. A local restaurant chain donated dinner and breakfast.
Most of the arrivals were headed to other destinations and expected to remain in Washington only briefly.
Governor Greg Abbott’s office did not respond to a request for comment Sunday morning. His office said last week that Texas has given bus rides to more than 15,000 people since April to Washington, New York, Chicago, and Philadelphia.
Arizona to remove shipping container wall on US-Mexico border
Abbott and Arizona Governor Doug Ducey, both Republicans, are strong critics of President Joe Biden on his handling of the US-Mexico border, where thousands of people are trying to cross daily, many to seek asylum.
Officials on both sides of the border are seeking emergency help in setting up shelters and services for migrants, some of whom are sleeping on streets.
Republicans argue Biden and Harris, designated the administration’s point person on the root causes of migration, have relaxed restrictions that induced many people to leave their countries of origin.
Biden has ended some policies but kept others enacted by former president Donald Trump, whose administration also grappled with spikes in border crossings and at one point separated immigrant families and children as a deterrence initiative.
