After officially taking the oath to be the 47th President of the United States, President Donald Trump (R) addressed a crowd of supporters in Emancipation Hall inside the Capitol. During that speech, President Trump acknowledged the work done by Governor Greg Abbott (R-TX) and his administration during former President Joe Biden's (D) tenure.
The southern border was the main point of focus for President Trump. This issue has been perhaps the cornerstone of his entire political career dating back to 2015 when he launched his first campaign for the Oval Office.
Gov. Abbott "Suffered" Through The Biden Years
President Trump shared that Gov. Abbott has endured a strenuous four years with President Biden as the leader of the free world.
"I talked about inflation too, you know, but how many times can you say that an apple has doubled in cost? I'd say it and I hit it hard. But then I go back to the fact that we don't want criminals coming into our country. We don't want the jails of every country in the world virtually being deposited into the United States. And that man (Abbott) had to suffer with it, and he did an unbelievable job. I'll tell you, he was a very popular governor, but now he's like an unbeatable governor because of your border policies. He was fantastic, he really was. And Governor Abbott, he's a great man, great leader.
Furthermore, President Trump asked Gov. Abbott if he was strong on the border for political reasons or because he thought it would be the right thing to do.
Abbott replied, "Self-preservation."
Trump responded by agreeing with Abbott and shared his disdain with the Biden administration for not allowing governors to properly protect their borders with the money apportioned for the border wall.
"It's self-preservation, but yeah, because the people are demanding it, the people of Texas are demanding it. The people are demanding it all over. So anyway, so we built it, and they wouldn't let us use it," said Trump. "They wouldn't let the governor use it, and other governors, they wouldn't let him use it, but he was the leader of the pack and did a great job."