In New York City on Wednesday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi urged President Biden to do a better job of guarding the southern border and agreed that it is “unfair to unload people on a community” amid the Big Apple’s immigration crisis.
“What we must do in our country is to have comprehensive immigration reform. We all know that we must secure our border, that’s our responsibility as a country. We also must respect those seeking asylum for appropriate reasons. But we also must understand the impact on communities.”
In a later-that-day private meeting, Pelosi informed reporters that she anticipated hearing from New York City Mayor Eric Adams.
The 82-year-old House Speaker also appeared to recognize that the Biden administration is the only one dealing with this never-before-seen issue of migrants pouring over the southern border.
On Friday, Adams issued a state of emergency, estimating that it will cost $1 billion to provide housing and social assistance for the now-18,600 new immigrants from the southern border.
The city’s shelter system is being overwhelmed by the influx of refugees. On Monday, the number of homeless persons residing in municipal shelters reached a new high of 62,174.
In the city’s public school system, more than 5,500 migrants have registered, overloading certain institutions that don’t have enough bilingual teachers to train the Spanish-speaking students arriving from Venezuela and other Central American nations.
Democratic governor Kathy Hochul, who is seeking reelection to keep her position, similarly vented her frustration on Wednesday at the White House’s lack of reaction.
