Texas Governor Rick Perry said the Obama Administration’s actions on immigration have effectively placed a “neon sign” on the border, inviting more illegal immigrants to enter the United States.
“As i have reiterated over the years, without border security immigration reform is a fruitless exercise,” Perry said at a press conference on Wednesday.
He asserted that President Obama’s use of executive authority on immigration makes the U.S. a magnet for illegal aliens. “As the president promoted his version of immigration reform in 2011, and uses executive authority…illegal immigration by unaccompanied minors from Central America skyrocket[ed]” Perry said. The president has “placed a neon sign on our border, ensuring people that they can ignore the law of the United States. The president is unilaterally allowing them to stay.”
The governor warned that Obama’s recent announcement that he will use unilateral action on immigration — protecting 5 million aliens from deportation — will only attract more illegal immigrants to the United States.
Perry said, “Last month, when the president granted amnesty to millions of people in the U.S. illegally — if the first policy opened the floodgates, there is no telling how much damage will be done through this new order.” That damage will be pronounced “particularly for border states,” he said.
“The potential for a mass immigration scenario is not one that our nation can be unprepared for,” Perry continued.
For this reason, Texas will continue funding its state-led border surge. “This law enforcement presence is all the more necessary as the feds continue to ignore the very real issue of border security,” the governor concluded.
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