Lambert addresses Texas border crisis, says rescinding Title 42 won't help

AUSTIN - State Rep. Stan Lambert joined other Texas lawmakers Wednesday to discuss the Texas-Mexico border situation, and said he agreed the southern border of the United States is experiencing a "global mass migration event."

Like Steven McCraw, the director of the Department of Public Safety since 2009, Lambert points to Mexican cartels as the source of trouble.

The cartels "involved in smuggling and human trafficking are 'brutal criminal organizations,' who apply military tactics and operations with no limitations," Lambert stated in an email to the Reporter-News after participating in the panel. "This is not a political issue but one that without proactive and thoughtful solutions, will continue to threaten the safety of Texas, as well as its health and its economy."

Lambert called the current situation a "human rights crisis."

The state legislator who serves Jones, Nolan and Taylor counties in District 71, also addressed plans to rescind Title 42. The law empowers federal health officials to prohibit migrants from entering the U.S. if that lessens the chance of spreading a contagious disease, Lambert said. In the most recent case, that is COVID-19 and its variants.

"I, along with many of my colleagues on the Defense and Veterans Affairs committee, believe that this is an ill-timed and potentially dangerous decision to rescind the law," Lambert stated. Removing Title 42 would be taking away an important tool for our border authorities and adding another hurdle to an already difficult situation."

Discussion Wednesday confirmed to Lambert that resources are needed at the border to protect communities in that area but also the rest of the state.

"When not enough manpower is made available to protect the border, DPS is forced to send state troopers to assist, taking them out of the communities they normally protect," Lambert stated. "Testimony reminded us that Homeland Security and Border Patrols numbers are down. The federal government is not doing Its part in funding them at an appropriate level.

"Leadership in both state and federal government must commit to giving the brave men and women protecting our southern border the resources they need to get the job done safely and effectively."

In his third term and up for re-election in November, Lambert is a member of the Texas House of Representatives committees on Defense and Veterans' Affairs Committee and Business and Industry.

Greg Jaklewicz is editor of the Abilene Reporter-News and general columnist. If you appreciate locally driven news, you can support local journalists with a digital subscription to ReporterNews.com.

This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: Lambert addresses border crisis, says rescinding Title 42 won't help