NEW YORK CITY — A bus filled with mostly single adult male migrants arrived at Port Authority in New York City from Texas Friday morning — where they were greeted by volunteers handing out burritos — as Gov. Greg Abbott (R) continues dispersing record-breaking numbers of border crossers and illegal aliens arriving in his state to Democrat-run “sanctuary cities.”
New York City officials appeared to be unprepared for the migrants’ arrival, or at least lacked communication and coordination to receive them, as Port Authority did not initially have a gate for the bus to park, and Port Authority employees were not aware of the plan for arrival. The bus circled between 8th and 9th avenues Friday morning until it was finally able to park at Gate 14 at approximately 7:30 a.m.
“Because of President Biden’s continued refusal to acknowledge the crisis caused by his open border policies, the State of Texas has had to take unprecedented action to keep our communities safe,” Gov. Abbott said in a statement.
“In addition to Washington, D.C., New York City is the ideal destination for these migrants, who can receive the abundance of city services and housing that Mayor Eric Adams has boasted about within the sanctuary city,” Abbott said. “I hope he follows through on his promise of welcoming all migrants with open arms so that our overrun and overwhelmed border towns can find relief.”
When the bus arrived, Breitbart News witnessed passengers disembarking after a 3-day journey from Texas, greeted by a handful of volunteers. One volunteer was wearing a “NYC immigration services” t-shirt, but there did not appear to be any city employees present.
The greeters handed migrants a bag bearing the logo of the humanitarian aid organization “Save the Children”; however, there appeared to be fewer than 10 children among the group, and no more than 5 women. The rest of the 60-some passengers on the bus were single males between the ages of 20 to 40 years old.
The volunteers led the group through Port Authority, corralled them into the entrance of the bus station and handed out burritos. Some migrants were provided rides to other locations, but it was unclear where.
A bus filled with mostly single adult male migrants arrives in New York City from Texas as part of Gov. Greg Abbotts’ plan that buses border crossers and illegal aliens out of the state to Democrat-run cities. (Emma-Jo Morris/Breitbart News)
A bus filled with mostly single adult male migrants arrives in New York City from Texas as part of Gov. Greg Abbotts’ plan that buses border crossers and illegal aliens out of the state to Democrat-run cities. (Emma-Jo Morris/Breitbart News)
One migrant, a man who said his name is Alfonzo and who arrived alone, told Breitbart News he traveled from Venezuela through Mexico into Texas, where he was put directly on the bus to New York City.
He left his wife and children in Chile and explained that he came alone to America first and planned to bring them later. He does not have any family or connections in the United States and does not speak English. He came with one bag containing some toiletries and a pillow, and had 130 U.S. dollars.
Alfonzo told Breitbart News that now was a good “opportunity” to come to the United States, explaining that he did not believe he would be admitted under former President Trump’s administration, specifically mentioning that the wall along the southern border was an obstacle to entry. He said locals in Mexico accepted money to direct him toward the border.
Alfonzo said he was looking for work, but had never been to New York City or the United States. He did not have a place to stay and was not informed of any lodging services or resources.
Despite Democrat officials’ support for illegal immigration through their expansive sanctuary city policies, which shield illegal aliens from arrest and deportation from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), a handful have warned that the migrant buses from Texas will overwhelm their city’s public resources.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D), for instance, has pleaded with Biden for “additional federal resources immediately” to deal with the illegal immigration surge. In another statement, Adams told New Yorkers to get “on board” with having their city overrun with border crossers and illegal aliens arriving and straining infrastructure, hospitals, schools, and neighborhoods.
NYC Mayor’s Officer / YouTube
“Everyone’s block is going to be impacted by this,” Adams said. “And so we have to add our advocacy with our ability to help our neighbors. We need everyone on board with this.”
“… our schools are going to be impacted, our healthcare system is going to be impacted, our infrastructure is going to be impacted,” he continued.
Adams’ office claims the migrant buses’ being sent to New York City is akin to using border crossers and illegal aliens “as political pawns,” calling the policy “disgusting.”
Gov. Abbott has issued a public invitation to Mayor Adams to visit the southern border, insisting the “sanctuary city” mayor witness “the magnitude of chaos created by Biden’s open-border policies.”
“I really wish they would [visit] because public officials across the country, they do need to realize the magnitude of the chaos created by Biden’s open-border policies,” Abbott said on Fox News Thursday.
“They’re up in arms about a few thousand people coming into their communities over the past few months? Listen, in any one sector in the state of Texas, we have more than 5,000 people coming across in that sector every single day,” Abbott continued.
Similarly, Washington, DC, Mayor Muriel Bowser requested National Guard troops last month to deal with what she called a “humanitarian crisis” of just over 6,000 migrants being bused to the capital from Texas since April.
Mayor Bowser / Facebook
Bowser, a staunch supporter of the region’s sanctuary city policy, claimed the migrant buses were a “tipping point” for Washington, DC, even as they pale in comparison to the level of illegal immigration that American border towns are forced to deal with under the Biden administration.
In Texas border towns alone, nearly 130,000 border crossers and illegal aliens were caught crossing the border in June. Most recently, in the small town of Normandy, Texas — with a population of just 29 residents — about 400 border crossers and illegal aliens crossed into the area this month.
Emma-Jo Morris is the Politics Editor at Breitbart News. Email her at ejmorris@breitbart.com or follow her on Twitter.
John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jbinder@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter here.