Hunt, Jackson Approve of Trump's Border and Illegal Immigration Enforcement

With President Donald Trump's (R) administration in its sixth week, Texas Politics caught up with Representatives Wesley Hunt (R-TX) and Ronny Jackson (R-TX) to discuss the federal government's border policy. The Texas congressmen provided their approval of President Trump's job so far, especially in comparison to former President Joe Biden's (D) administration.

Rep. Hunt's Response

Rep. Hunt began by saying that the southern border has been "virtually fixed" since President Trump assumed the Oval Office in January.

"[It's a] stark difference from what we've seen for the past four years, and apparently, the Democrats were saying that we had to fix this, and we were dragging our feet here in the halls of Congress to not get it done, and it wasn't Biden's fault when he could have literally, through the executive fiat, do what President Trump has done in the last two weeks," said Rep. Hunt.

Hunt found humor in the notion that the left side of the aisle attempted to pass on the border issue to Republicans despite HR 2 being sent to the Democrat-controlled (at the time) Senate.

"So, I kind of find it funny that they tried to hang that on us toward the end after we passed HR 2 two years ago, and within a couple of weeks, the border is virtually fixed, especially compared to the way it's been for the past four years. The crackdown should have happened a long time ago. This shouldn't be your partisan issue. This should be an issue of safety. And President Trump is behaving given the mandate that he was given by the American public," said Hunt.

Moreover, pertaining to Trump's decision to use Guantanamo Bay to house violent illegal immigrants, Rep. Wesley Hunt said he loves the idea and Trump's willingness to "think outside the box" to solve problems.

"I love the way this guy thinks outside the box. I love it. Let's get creative. If you are a heinous criminal, then by the end of the day I'm not interested in your feelings. You need to be sent out of this country, you need to go to jail. If Guantanamo Bay is an option, I'm here for it."

Rep. Jackson's Response

Rep. Ronny Jackson was asked about the collaboration and job performance of President Trump and Governor Greg Abbott (R-TX) in securing the border and deporting illegal immigrants.

"A big part of why President Trump was you brought in with a big mandate, why he won every swing state out there is because immigration, immigration, immigration, it was, it was number one a lot of people's minds because the impact it's having our economy, on our safety and security, crime. I mean, it was a big deal," said Rep. Jackson. "And so, I think people are embracing the fact that they're doing what they said they're going to do. They're going after these people. They're here illegally."

Rep. Jackson also said that the Trump administration is currently directing their attention to the heinous, violent illegal immigrants, but "other" illegal immigrants can be included in the first deportations.

"They're really focusing on illegal immigrants who are criminals right now. I mean, they really are. They're trying their best to find the people that have criminal backgrounds, that have done stuff here, that have done stuff in other countries, but came here that they found out about, that are murderers and rapists and things of that nature ... Will there be some other people that get scooped up in this that are here illegally, but don't have that criminal background? Yes, that's but that's not the focus of what's happening right now."

Jackson that Gov. Abbott is "on board" with President Trump's policies in action, and applauded Gov. Abbott's efforts despite the Biden administration being less sympathetic to deporting illegal immigrants.