Two railroad bridges between Texas and Mexico are now closed after U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reported a surge in criminal organizations smuggling migrants by train. CBP also says it needs to redeploy officers to help border patrol agents process migrants who have just crossed into the U.S.
Emily Escalante, 19, her family and two dogs left Venezuela four months ago. The family spent about a month in Panama and Costa Rica working construction jobs and selling Venezuelan breakfast food to make money.
“All for a better future and for the situation of our country,” Escalante said when asked why she came to America.
Escalante and her mom said their country is in crisis and they wouldn’t have left Venezuela if they didn’t have to. They said if you buy food, then you can’t afford shoes.
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In Mexico City, they hopped on “La Bestia,” the rail train that connects Mexico to the U.S., and began the eight-day ride to Piedras Niegras. The migrants crossed the border into Eagle Pass on Wednesday, Dec. 13, and were released from the CBP processing center two days later.
Now, CBP is shutting down that same rail track that brought them to the U.S. because of the massive increase in migrants, CBP has also closed a port of entry in Lukeville, Arizona, a pedestrian crossing in San Diego and a vehicle crossing in Eagle Pass, Texas.
“Our economy is greatly impacted because a lot of our customers are from Mexico,” said Rebecca Flores, the owner of Bees & Berries Escentuals in Eagle Pass.
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On Nov. 27, one vehicle crossing from Mexico into the city closed because of the increase in immigrant crossings. Flores said the closure is bad for businesses who rely on customers from Mexico.
It’s also a headache for travel. People cross the border every day for school or work. When Flores drives back to the U.S. from Mexico, it usually takes 30 to 45 minutes, but now it’s taking four to five hours.
“It’s just very difficult to have to be in line for hours, you know, especially [if] we have to come back to tend to our families and our jobs,” Flores said. “With this closure, it’s made it very difficult to do what we’ve been doing our whole life.”
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Borderplex Alliance is an economic development and policy advocacy organization based in El Paso, Texas, which also saw its rail traffic from Mexico come to a halt Monday.
“This latest shutdown will dramatically impact businesses and hopefully it will be a short-term problem. But clearly the longer-term solutions have to take place in Washington,” Borderplex Alliance CEO Jon Barela said.
One study found that every minute goods and services are delayed coming across the border represents one million dollars of lost revenue to the American economy.
“This latest migrant crisis and the federal government’s response to it reminds me of seeing the movie Groundhog Day. We’ve seen this time and time again. And yet we continue to do the same thing, which is nothing, and it is very frustrating for businesses and the average American as the migrant crisis continues,” Barela said.
Vital commodities in agriculture, automotive parts and automobiles, and consumer electronics are just some of the goods that come into the U.S. by rail, Barela said, adding that the two rail closures represent a 45% closure in rail crossings at the southern border.
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Talks between U.S. senators and Biden administration officials are ongoing.
Republicans have refused to pass additional aid to Ukraine unless it’s tied to stricter border security measures. The Senate canceled part of the holiday recess to continue negotiations, but a vote on a deal before Christmas seems unlikely.