Former President Trump wants to hire 10,000 additional Border Patrol agents and give them a $10,000 retention and signing bonus, after he helped derail a bill that included funding for more border personnel. Trump made his pledge during a rally in Prescott Valley, Ariz., 260 miles north of the state’s border with Mexico. He accepted an endorsement from the agents’ union, the National Border Patrol Council, a longtime Trump backer that endorsed him during his prior two campaigns. Trump has made illegal immigration the focus of his campaign and blamed Vice President Harris for a record spike in unauthorized border crossings, reports the Associated Press. He denounces people entering the U.S. illegally as invaders and criminals, and s vows to stage the largest deportation operation in U.S. history if he is elected.
He defied the union this year when he convinced Republicans to kill a bipartisan immigration bill that contained additional border resources. The White House says it would have funded 1,500 personnel at U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which includes the Border Patrol. Trump said he did not want to give Democrats a political victory on his key issue. At the rally, Trump contended the legislation was “a horrible bill.” Trump and his allies call Harris the “border czar,” even though she never had such a title. President Biden asked Harris arly in his administration to study the “root causes” of migration from Central America.
“If we allow Border Czar Harris to win this election, every city, every community in this great country is going to go to hell,” union president Paul Perez said as he stood next to Trump,