Congress left Washington, D.C., Aug. 1 for a month-long recess, without having passed an immigration bill addressing the porous U.S.-Mexico border and humanitarian crisis.
Figures compiled by the federal Department of Homeland Security’s U.S. Customs and Border Protection division show 57,500 “unaccompanied alien children” have been apprehended and processed since October 2013, the majority in the Rio Grande Valley. While President Obama’s request to Congress for $3.7 billion in emergency funding remains pending, the governor’s office said the state of Texas will tap available funds to pay the cost of deploying 1,000 national guard troops along the border to assist in law enforcement operations. The cost to do that is estimated at $12 million a month.
Volunteer organizations are delivering support to help care for mothers with small children and unaccompanied minors from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador who have crossed the border to escape gang violence and poverty. Aid comes in the form of food, clothing, medical supplies, school supplies and legal assistance.
