Border Patrol wives run for Congress
The wives of three Border Patrol agents are running for Congress, fed up with what their husbands have endured for nearly two years as irregular immigration to the United States hit an all-time high and remains unchecked.
As agent morale tanked and early retirements and resignations rose in 2021, three Hispanic women who live in border districts stepped up, determined to give a voice to the 20,000 federal law enforcement agents who have apprehended illegal immigrants 3.6 million times since President Joe Biden took office.
So far, that focus has won them broad support from conservatives, with each woman securing the party nomination in March, including Cassy Garcia, who beat out six other Republicans.
"The support they’re not receiving from the administration — it's unbelievable," said Garcia, whose husband has been an agent for 26 years. Garcia is challenging nine-term Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar in a district that stretches more than 150 miles from the border city of Laredo to San Antonio.
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Garcia pointed to Biden rescinding Trump-era border initiatives, including making asylum-seekers remain in Mexico through court proceedings, as actions the White House took against the advice of Border Patrol officials. The early 2021 decision to appoint Vice President Kamala Harris as border czar, tasked with working with Central American nations to fix conditions south of the border so immigrants don't flee to the U.S., has proven unsuccessful, she said.
"I think she's still trying to figure out the root causes, right? We know what the root causes are, right? They're not enforcing laws," said Garcia, a former senior aide to Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX).
Rep. Mayra Flores in June won a special election for a seat the incumbent left to become a lobbyist. Flores is married to a Border Patrol agent and made border security a top focus in her messaging; she has continued to focus on the issue in her reelection bid this November.
"We have a border that is completely out of control," said Flores. "It's not just a humanitarian crisis. It's also a national security crisis. ... Our Border Patrol are focused on women and children. They’re not able to focus on the terrorists coming in."
Irene Armendariz-Jackson quit her job as a Realtor in El Paso to challenge Democratic Rep. Veronica Escobar, who succeeded Texas gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke. Armendariz-Jackson ran unsuccessfully in 2020 but chose to try again this cycle in large part because of the coronavirus vaccine mandate imposed on all federal employees, including Border Patrol. Her husband retired early from the Border Patrol after 24 years as a federal agent and chaplain.
“Due to Biden’s tyrannical vaccine mandate, he has had to take an early retirement. He has served El Paso & America well — he truly loved his job. This is a sad day for our family,” Armendariz-Jackson wrote in a series of tweets announcing the news in December 2021.
“My husband was lucky enough to be able to take an early retirement, but many are simply having to quit. It is wrong & pitiful,” Armendariz-Jackson continued. “What we inject into our bodies is our choice. This is a major part of why I’m running for Congress in Texas’s 16th district. Our country deserves better than this. The men and women who served us at CBP & in the armed forces deserve better.”
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I don't blame them. Biden's irresponsible border policy and his vaccine mandate have ruined the border and ruined lives. The Border patrol deserves respect and they have not gotten it from the Biden administration. Hopefully, the border Hispanics can elect some Republican candidates who will try to protect the border.
The Babylon Bee weighs in on the border crisis:
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