The president of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, urged Mexicans in the United States not to support politicians opposed to their country, in response to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ announcement to deploy 1,000 members of the National Guard to the state of Texas.
He assured, in his usual morning press conference, that the Republican withdrew from his party’s presidential primaries after his anti-immigrant rhetoric caused a decrease in his poll numbers, reported the Efe news agency.
“Look how it went, if he already had to decline. And I would just say to Mexicans and those of Mexican origin not to vote for any party candidate from the United States who is against the people of Mexico,” she asked.
Governor DeSantis announced on Thursday the sending of more National and State Guard troops to the Texas border with Mexico, which will help Texas in its attempt to stop the illegal entry of people through the southern US border.
López Obrador attributes the current pressure on migration to the presidential elections in Mexico and the United States. Both Democratic President Joe Biden and Republican candidate Donald Trump have promised to strengthen the border due to the increase in undocumented immigrants.
He also stated that it is “a big lie” that migrants pose a threat to the United States and highlighted that that country became a great nation because of foreigners.
“There are about 40 million Mexicans in the United States, we are going to be addressing them. First, you should not vote for a party that uses Mexico to campaign, that no lies against Mexico are used to campaign,” he said.
He asked Mexicans in US territory to be attentive to presidential candidates who propose the regularization of approximately 10 million migrants residing in the country. “Let all Mexicans in the United States help because it is a great injustice, it is inhumane to hold hostages those who are going to make a living, those who are going to work, without regularizing their situation,” he added.
U.S. authorities detained more than 300,000 migrants at the border with Mexico in December, marking a three-year record, Customs and Border Protection reported.
Ron DeSantis will mobilize 1,000 National Guard troops to Texas, reinforcing the more than 90 agents of the Florida Highway Patrol, the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the Department of Law Enforcement.
“We need to stop this invasion of the southern border once and for all,” the Florida governor said at a news conference in Jacksonville.
He justified, in a statement, the deployment by defending the right of states to preserve their sovereignty and confront “invasion” across the border.
In his statement, he emphasized the importance of securing the border for Texas and mentioned installing additional barriers, such as razor wire. He also reinforced the importance of having a protected border to guarantee the country’s security.
Meanwhile, the Florida Democratic Party criticized Governor DeSantis’ border operation as a political stunt. Nikki Fried, chairwoman of that state’s Democrats, said: “After limping back to his mansion as America’s biggest loser, Ron is now desperate to grab the headlines and score victories.”
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