President Andrés Manuel López Obrador of Mexico strongly criticized Texas Governor Greg Abbott for enacting a law that grants peace officers the authority to arrest individuals they suspect entered the country illegally.
López Obrador, commonly known as AMLO, accused Abbott of merely seeking the Republican nomination for vice president and delivered this scathing commentary during a news conference on Tuesday.
In addition to his criticism, AMLO took the opportunity to provide a historical lecture to Governor Abbott.
“He wants to be the Republican Party’s vice presidential candidate. In the United States he wants to gain popularity with these measures,” López Obrador said, NBC News reports.
“You are not going to win anything,” he warned Abbott. “On the contrary, he will lose sympathy because in Texas there are many Mexicans, many migrants. He forgets that Texas was from Mexico, like 10 states of the American Union.”
López Obrador pledged to protect “our countrymen and migrants” and mentioned that Mexico has already initiated a legal challenge against the law.
The new legislation categorizes illegal entry into the country as a state misdemeanor.
Peace officers, broadly defined to include individuals like local police officers and security officers of the state medical board, are authorized to inquire about an individual’s citizenship and immigration status if there is suspicion of illegal entry into the U.S.
If confirmed, a magistrate can issue an order for them to leave the country, as reported by NBC News.
Abbott’s press office did not respond to NBC News’ request for comment specifically regarding Obrador’s criticism.
However, in a statement, Abbott asserted that President Biden had not effectively secured the border, providing Texas with constitutional authority to take action.
Written by B.C. Begley
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B.C. Begley 