AUSTIN, Texas — Governor Greg Abbott held a border security briefing on Saturday where he was joined by eleven sheriffs from border communities. As a result of the meeting, Abbott is promising to arrest more people crossing into Texas illegally.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection recorded more than 180,000 encounters on the Mexican border in May, which is the most since the year 2000. The governor says he wants to stop cartels, smugglers, and gangs involved in human trafficking along the Texas border.
"There is a coordinated effort on the Texas side of the border among cartel members, among gang members among smugglers to place people in a short period of time only to be picked up by somebody else who are being involved in human trafficking and placing these people in other parts of the state of Texas as well as other parts of the entire country," said Abbott.
He says plans to build a border wall along the Texas-Mexico border have begun, as the state is now receiving bids for construction.
A University of Texas - Texas Tribune poll published on June 28 found Texas voters considered immigration and border security as the most important issues facing the state.
