The US border authorities began airlifting planeloads of largely Haitian migrants from a massive temporary camp they had set up, after swimming across the Rio Grande between Mexico and the US, with repatriation planes arriving in Port-au-Prince, Haiti's capital, on a daily basis.
Many of the more than 12,000 migrants camping under a bridge in Del Rio, after crossing from Ciudad Acua, Mexico, are expected to be deported by the US.
In the meantime, on Monday, the Biden administration criticized footage of US border patrol agents in Texas gathering up Haitian migrants on horseback. The White House press secretary said on Monday that although she did not have the "full context" of the situation, she cannot "imagine what context would make [using horses and whips] appropriate.”
Federal and local authorities are struggling to cope with the influx of illegal aliens, and the Texas governor recently asked the White House to declare a federal emergency declaration, but as of Tuesday night, no response has been received.
Appointed by Biden to handle the crisis, which the authorities were hesitant to acknowledge, Vice President Kamala Harris remained largely silent about the problem for months and refused to visit the border, where local border officers had become overwhelmed by the uncontrolled influx, prompting heavy criticism from Republicans at all levels.
Moreover, in June the VP urged illegal immigrants from South America to "not come" to the US.