Texas authorities very alert to immigration wave before Trump

(NewsNation) — The Texas Ministry of Public Security (DPS) is preparing for surges at the southern border as people try to enter the US earlier Donald Trump returns to the White House.

“We still want to take a proactive attitude. We don’t want to be reactive,” said Texas DPS Lt. Chris Olivarez. “We want to be prepared for everything, for every possible wave.”

To that end, Texas DPS officers have been conducting “mass migration response” exercises along the border. One strategy involves stationing DPS officers in their vehicles, with flashing red and blue lights, every few hundred yards along the border.

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DPS said the strategy is in place in the Rio Grande Valley, Del Rio and El Paso Border Patrol sectors. Agents have also placed loudspeakers along the border that play a short, sharp message that can be heard across the Rio Grande in Mexico.

“Atención, atención. It is illegal to do this. Hay una cerca aqui. Este no es un puerto de entrada,” the message says in Spanish, translated as: “Attention, attention. It is illegal to cross here. There is a fence here. This is not a gateway.”

While Texas DPS and the US Border Patrol prepare for a possible surge ahead of President Trump’s inauguration on January 20, the surge may not happen thanks to The policies of the Biden administration which have significantly slowed down the illegal crossing.

“We have seen a significant decrease in the number of illegal border crossings, especially in Texas, where the number has dropped by almost 86%,” Olivarez said.

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The Biden policies include denying the right to asylum to anyone who arrives at the border outside an official port of entry and without an asylum appointment with Customs and Border Protection.

But while individuals may think twice about entering the US illegally, the cartels are working harder than ever to smuggle people into the US.

Two recent examples of the cartels’ desperation were the discovery of someone hiding in the gas tank of a semi-tractor and people “welded” into the body of a pickup truck. Border Patrol agents had to pry the sides of the truck to reveal people inside.

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