If you have been paying attention to the migration challenges that are going to start ramping up now that it is an election year, you know that the governor of Texas issued a public statement yesterday essentially saying that he doesn’t care about what the Supreme Court says, to him the President and his administration are failing to uphold their Constitutional duties to protect the states.
Now in another life, this writer would have probably been writing some press releases and social media posts calling out this governor since it would rally some votes. Let’s be real though, none of that is going to solve the challenges that this governor and plenty others are facing.
So, instead of attacking the man for doing what he thinks is the right thing, let’s take a dive into what he is saying and interpret it from a good crisis management perspective.
What he said: “Despite having been put on notice in a series of letters—one of which I delivered to him by hand—President Biden has ignored Texas’s demand that he perform his constitutional duties”
My interpretation: “I have been trying to tell you this for months that there is a problem here. I am doing everything that I can to manage this issue, but I am unable to meet the duties of my job without your support.”
What he said: “President Biden has instructed his agencies to ignore federal statutes that mandate the detention of illegal immigrants. The effect is to illegally allow their en masse parole into the United States.”
My interpretation: “We have policies and procedures in place to manage these types of events for a reason, and I don’t understand why we are not following them. If we need to change our policies, then please let’s do so, but what we are currently doing is causing damage.”
What he said: “By wasting taxpayer dollars to tear open Texas’s border security infrastructure, President Biden has enticed illegal immigrants away from the 28 legal entry points along this State’s southern border— bridges where nobody drowns—and into the dangerous waters of the Rio Grande.”
My interpretation: “I have spent significant resources trying to manage this, and I feel that effort is not respected. People are going to die if we continue what we are doing, and it will only add additional burdens to our social, economic, and physical infrastructure if we do not have clear and marked entry points for people to seek safety at.”
What he said: “Under President Biden’s lawless border policies, more than 6 million illegal immigrants have crossed our southern border in just 3 years. That is more than the population of 33 different States in this country. This illegal refusal to protect the States has inflicted unprecedented harm on the People all across the United States.”
My interpretation: “The large groups that are coming through the state is unmanageable, and I do not think that we have the capacity to respond to this on our own. We can barely help our people as is, and this is going to add pressures to our system in ways that I cannot predict. We need to find other, more viable solutions, and I need your help to do so.”
What he said: “James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and the other visionaries who wrote the U.S. Constitution foresaw that States should not be left to the mercy of a lawless president who does nothing to stop external threats like cartels smuggling millions of illegal immigrants across the border.”
My interpretation: “As I said, we have rules and policies in place for a reason, and we need to follow them. There are dangerous people who are taking advantage of the migrants to get them here, and by not working together we are putting their lives, as well as our citizens’, in jeopardy.”
What he said: “I have already declared an invasion under Article I, § 10, Clause 3 to invoke Texas’s constitutional authority to defend and protect itself. That authority is the supreme law of the land and supersedes any federal statutes to the contrary. The Texas National Guard, the Texas Department of Public Safety, and other Texas personnel are acting on that authority, as well as state law, to secure the Texas border.”
My interpretation: “You have given me no other alternative than to work with the systems that I have. I know that it doesn’t make any sense, but our laws are super messed up. Under my legal guidance, I do have authority to take action to do what I can.”
End letter.
Now, I know that the #politicos reading this are thinking how crazy I am and that no, he is just playing games to win the upcoming election.
Even if he is, should that really stop us from listening to what he is saying? Ultimately, this is a crisis that has been blown up due to hyper partisanship. This unwillingness to listen to each other is preventing us from ensuring that:
The migrants can seek asylum safely without further harm.
U.S. citizens who are also struggling with safety, health care, and other challenges can get assistance and aid.
We grow stronger as one country and community, despite our many obstacles.
When we choose to stop and listen to what someone else is saying, we may be able to find solutions to these challenges, but if we continue to only be concerned about the end result (i.e., the election) then people will continue to die – and that’s on all of us.
So, let’s start talking sense and remove the politics from our asks for help.
We will be better people because of it.