After the Texas government ordered “enhanced inspections” on commercial trucks at the Mexico-US border, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has criticized his neighbor’s order calling it “despicable,” according to Reuters. The comments came as the increased inspections have disrupted trade along the border, sparking protests among Mexican truck drivers as well.
“Legally, they can do it, but it’s a very despicable way to act,” Lopez Obrador told reporters at a press conference.
Texas governor Greg Abbott placed the updated orders earlier this month as a response to what he calls the “open border” policies President Joe Biden has been placing. Abbott hopes the inspections will stop more illegal immigrants, criminals, and drugs from crossing the border and entering the US, Reuters reports. In response, the White House sent a statement last week criticizing Abbott’s decision claiming the increased inspections “Have led to disruptions for the food and automobile supply chains and rising prices for families,” according to a released statement.
“These actions are impacting people’s jobs and the livelihoods of hardworking families in Texas and across the country. That’s not a political statement; that’s a statement of fact,” Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters in a briefing. “[The inspections are] significantly impacting the local and regional supply chains to the point that trade associations, officials, and businesses are calling for the Texas governor to reverse their self- — this self-inflicted gridlock.”
According to Reuters, the traffic jams caused by the increased inspections cost millions of dollars in losses, even sparking protests from frustrated Mexican truck drivers. With supply chains in disarray, Psaki believes the inspections are yet another move of defiance Abbott has been conducting against Biden, calling it yet “another political stunt.”
The Republican governor is seeking a third reelection for his current position in this coming election in November, and many believe this could be another reason to explain his “self-inflicted actions.” Lopez Obrador has also pointed to that reasoning, saying himself that Abbott was trying to increase his popularity among Texan voters by toughening up on immigration, Reuters reports. Abbott’s office declined to immediately comment against the claims.
The Lone Star state has been quite defiant against Biden’s Democratic stance on immigration and the border. On April 15, Texas announced it would halt inspections after reaching an agreement with four Mexican states in which Mexican officials would instead increase their security efforts to target illegal immigrants and drug trafficking along the border, according to Reuters. Abbott has also ordered charter buses carrying migrants from Texas to send a message to the President as well.
