Officials tour Air Base, speak on condition of minor illegal immigrants

Cruz calls minor illegal immigrants’ trek “harrowing experience” and “humanitarian crisis”

Sen. Ted Cruz (R), Rep. Mike Burgess (L) , AG Greg Abbott (C)  | 
PHOTO CREDIT: Youtube screen capture

SAN ANTONIO, Texas, June, 23, 2014 — Senator Ted Cruz, Congressman Mike Burgess, and Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott toured the facilities on Lackland Air Force Base. Lackland is part of Joint Base San Antonio, which includes Lackland, Fort Sam Houston, Randolph Air Base, and the San Antonio Military Medical Center (SAMMC), where Bowe Bergdahl is undergoing medical treatment and reintegration training. Lackland currently houses thousands of minor illegal immigrants smuggled into Texas over the past few months.

The reported conditions of the detainees awaiting deportation are appalling. Allegedly, outbreaks of scabies, chicken pox, and other childhood diseases most US children are vaccinated against are occurring in the dense living population in the once abandoned dormitories.

In a statement, Cruz described the conditions and urges Barack Obama and Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson to take appropriate, lawful actions to deter the ever-increasing flow of illegal immigrants, especially children, into the U.S.

We are witnessing a humanitarian crisis unfolding that is the direct consequence of President Obama’s lawlessness. We just toured this Air Force facility, where up to 1,200 children are being cared for… but they have come through harrowing circumstances.

When the President of the United States prevents the Border Patrol from following the law, and enforcing our immigration laws, when the President of the United States announces to the world amnesty for those who have broken the law, the consequence is people respond to that, and the way they respond to that is handing over their children to drug dealers and vicious cartels.

This is heartbreaking, but we need to act to stop it by number one finally securing the border and number two, by not offering amnesty which only incentivizes more and more people to violate the law and in this instance endanger the safety and lives of their kids.

Last week, Governor Rick Perry, Lt. Governor David Dewhurst and Texas House Speaker issued an emergency order establishing a $1.3 million per week funded surge of state and local law enforcement personnel to combat human trafficking and sex slavery on the Texas-Mexico border. In conjunction, GOP Gubernatorial candidate Greg Abbott sent a letter to DHS Secretary Johnson proposing state level measures Texas plans to take to secure the border. Cruz backed the proposal sending his own letter to Johnson, urging him to sincerely consider the proposal.