As the illegal immigration crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border continues to worsen, Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) announced this week that he has created a new position in his administration to strengthen border security.
The announcement comes after border officials encountered 251,487 migrants attempting to illegally cross the southern border last month, the highest number ever recorded, according to data from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
Last month’s numbers, combined with the first two months of fiscal year 2023, put the United States on track to have close to 3 million illegal immigrant encounters at the southern border this year, the highest ever recorded. The number would shatter the previous record set in fiscal year 2022, when 2,378,944 illegal immigrants were encountered by border officials – which was also the first time that figure exceeded 2 million.
“For nearly two years, the State of Texas has taken unprecedented, historic action under Operation Lone Star in response to the Biden Administration’s refusal to secure the border,” said Abbott. “To continue doing what no other state in the history of our country has done to secure the border, I hired Mike Banks as the State of Texas’ first-ever Border Czar.”
“As an award-winning Border Patrol Agent, with decades of federal law enforcement and border security experience, Mike is the perfect choice to oversee Texas’ fight against the surge of illegal immigration, lethal drugs, and deadly weapons flowing into our state and nation,” Abbott added. “I have no doubt that Mike’s strong record of leadership and wealth of experience will provide Texans—and Americans—the level of border security expertise they deserve from a proper Border Czar.”
According to a press release from Abbott’s office, Banks is “a former U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) Weslaco Station Patrol Agent in Charge. Banks has over three decades of federal law enforcement leadership experience, with 23 years in border security operations and administration along the United States-Mexico border.”
