The White House challenges Texas over razor wire

From the perilous banks of the Rio Grande to the serene streets of southwest Florida, the border crisis hits close to home.

Right now, there are miles of razor wire along the Rio Grande, but people are still crossing the border and seeking refuge.

The justice department now wants the wires gone, saying they pose “serious on-the-ground consequences” for border patrol agents.

WINK News spoke to one man who, in his quest for a better life, faced the harrowing ordeal of being trapped in the wires.

Crossing the Rio Grande River is a matter of life or death. At least that’s how one undocumented immigrant in Florida describes it: the moment he fled Venezuela and crossed the Rio Grande river.

He said one woman got caught in it, and her stomach was cut open from wires. In her arms was her 3-month-old baby.

The same type of razor wires the white house said on Tuesday is also hurting agents trying to patrol the area, calling on help from the Supreme Court to allow agents to remove it.

But Republican party leaders in southwest Florida disagree.

“The federal government was delegated by the states, the authority and the responsibility to secure our borders from invasion and incursion. They’re not doing it,” said Tara Jenner, Lee County Gop. “When Congress and/or the president failed to do their job, the states have an obligation and a right under their own constitutions to be able to take up where the federal government has been lacking.”

As Biden seeks a plan that would include more law enforcement, more judges, and asylum processors for cities that are seeing an influx of undocumented immigrants.

SW Florida Republicans say the solution starts with closing the border.

“I mean, most of us that come here from another country, we come here because it’s a better way of life, and Texas is doing what they need to do. Florida’s doing what they need to do,” said Yvette Benarroch.

And with or without razor wires, undocumented immigrants say they wish they had a quicker pathway to seek asylum without risking their lives.

Operations at four border locations have been closed since last month and are expected to reopen on Thursday.

The locations were closed when staff was needed to assist border patrol in other locations that saw an increase in the number of people coming across.

Click here to see the resources Lee GOP offers to cover the border crisis.