Texas Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar said Tuesday on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” that migrants are under the impression the border is open and thus will “keep coming.”
NBC News Homeland Security Correspondent Julia Ainsley asked how Congress could deter migrants from coming to the border.
“Do you see it as this is something that needs funding and processing and manpower, or do you see it as something that we need deterrence?” Ainsley asked. “Do you want money or deterrence here that could really help these communities?”
Cuellar said there are several factors that attract migrants, and while the U.S. has poured billions into Central American countries, “there are people coming in from different countries besides the Central American countries. So we have to address the push factors.” (RELATED: ‘You Just Said We Need More Money’: John Roberts Grills Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna On The Border)
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“The pull factors are very simple,” Cuellar continued. “You’ve got to have not only the money, the personnel, the equipment, the technology, but you’ve got to have also the right policies at the border. And if you give the impression that the border is open, it doesn’t matter if you have all of the technology or all the border patrol agents.”
Cuellar then said the U.S. needs more resources but also “compassionate, dignified policies but strict policies that follow the law so we don’t give the impression that the border is open.”
“As long as the border – they have the impression the border is open, they’re going to keep coming.”
A caravan of more than 1,000 migrants illegally crossed into El Paso, Texas, on Sunday amid a crisis at the southern border. U.S. Customs and Border protection sources told Fox News on Monday that the El Paso sector has seen 2,397 migrant encounters within a 24-hour period and that agents from other field offices have been called in to assist the overflow of migrants.