Allred calls migrant surge a 'crisis,' urges Senate to pass border security bill

Colin Allred says "crisis" is an acceptable word to describe the situation at the U.S.-Mexico border.

LAREDO, Texas (Border Report) -- Colin Allred says "crisis" is an acceptable term to describe the migrant surge at the U.S.-Mexico border.

The Democratic congressman from Dallas, who is challenging Republican Sen. Ted Cruz for his seat in November, was in Laredo, Texas, on Friday, to meet with border officials and nonprofits that assist asylum-seekers.

After touring the Rio Grande, he said he was "frustrated" by current immigration policies and he wants to see real change by Congress to stop the flow of migrants illegally crossing from Mexico.

"The term 'crisis' is applicable when you have a record number of crossings, which we did in December," Allred said in response to a question from Border Report.

Allred said he's calling it as he sees it.

"Let's not make it a partisan term. Let's just say that we have to respond to it," he said. "My family is from the (Rio Grande) Valley and I recognize the burden it places on border communities when we don't have the policies in place to deal with this. I'm incredibly frustrated right now."

Allred toured a U.S. Customs and Border Protection processing facility with U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, a Democrat whose hometown is Laredo and whose district extends to the Rio Grande Valley.

Both Allred and Cuellar are members of the new Democrats for Border Security Task Force, which formed earlier this year to try to change the narrative about the border and border communities.

Allred says he grew up spending summers in Brownsville, Texas, across from Matamoros, Mexico. His grandfather was a U.S. Customs officer and he says he has fond memories of running and playing in the streets and neighborhood near his grandmother's house.

He urged Senate leaders to bring to a vote the Senate Border Security Bill -- the same bill that President Joe Biden pushed when he visited Brownsville on Feb. 29.

"We have this bill that would provide billions of dollars to secure the border for additional personnel, to raise the standard on asylum, to really help in a fundamental way. No state would benefit more than Texas," he said. "But for some reason, we have some people who have chosen not to support it and I think mostly that's because of the politics."

Allred accused Republicans of delaying immigration reform until after the November elections to give them a controversial issue to run on, and one that is one of the most divisive in the nation.

Cruz has opposed the Senate border bill and says it is not strong enough and does not provide for the building of more federal border wall, which he deems necessary to stop illegal immigration.

A Cruz spokesperson told Border Report on Friday that immigration and border security is a leading issue of concern for the senator.

"Securing the border is Sen. Cruz's top priority. His record is clear: He has been the leading fighter for a secure border and has worked day in and day out to pressure the Biden administration to close the border and protect Texas," the spokesperson said. "Allred has been a consistent vote for Joe Biden and his open-borders agenda."

The spokesperson criticized Allred for not speaking out on the recent death of nursing student Laken Riley, allegedly at the hands of a man illegally present in the U.S., or "on the increase in drug and human trafficking, on the destruction of South Texans' private property and on the overwhelming strain on law enforcement."

The proposed Senate border bill would add 1,500 CBP officers, 4,300 asylum officers and 100 immigration judges, and raise the number of U.S. detention beds to 50,000.

Cuellar is the only Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee. He said funding bills passed last month and signed by Biden for the remainder of Fiscal Year 2024 raise the number of detention beds to 41,500 -- up from 40,000 -- and provide enough funds to add 22,000 new Border Patrol agents.

Cuellar said it also raises the amount of money the Department of Homeland Security has for deportation flights to send back migrants who do not qualify for asylum.

He said an estimated "87% to 94% will be ejected because they don't qualify."

At the Holdings Institute nonprofit in Laredo, which assists asylum-seekers, officials told the congressmen that they are currently receiving about 100 migrants per day whom DHS releases while they await their immigration proceedings.

Cuellar said that affects the "morale" of Border Patrol agents, and he chastised the administration's current "catch and release policy" that he says undoes the hard efforts of agents who patrol the U.S. borderlands.

He agreed with Allred's assessment and said the word "crisis" is apt.

"Sometimes Democrats have hesitated to describe this as a crisis," he said.

Cuellar added that he believes Mexico is working to stop illegal immigration from its border and praised CBP data that showed a drop in illegal crossings in February and March.

Sandra Sanchez can be reached at SSanchez@BorderReport.com.