U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stopped in Dallas on Monday morning, following a four-day trip to South America, to discuss the Venezuelan political crisis and President Donald Trump’s latest comments about the crisis on the U.S.-Mexico border.
Pompeo’s visit comes at a time when immigration officials and border shelters in Texas find themselves overwhelmed with thousands of mostly Central American immigrants turning themselves in at the border and seeking asylum in the U.S.
But the State Department head was mum when asked his views about Trump's threatening to send detained migrants to "sanctuary cities."
Due to the fact that Democrats are unwilling to change our very dangerous immigration laws, we are indeed, as reported, giving strong considerations to placing Illegal Immigrants in Sanctuary Cities only....
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 12, 2019
The Dallas Morning News reported last week that the Health and Human Services Department was scouting vacant properties in Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Fort Worth to establish permanent shelters that would house unaccompanied minors awaiting their day in immigration court.
Pompeo said that the president has made it clear that there is a “crisis” at the border and that Congress needs to change immigration laws to prevent the buildup of migrants at the border.
Trump’s "going to use every lawful tool that he has available to ensure that we can protect American sovereignty,” Pompeo said.
Pompeo's visit comes a few weeks after the Trump administration announced it was cutting financial aid to Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala, a move that has been heavily criticized.
Despite evidence that aid had helped reduce both violence in and the number of people fleeing Central America, Pompeo defended the cuts last week during a CNN appearance. On Monday, he doubled down, saying the aid that the U.S. has provided for years hasn't worked.
“You grow an economy with the rule of law, property rights, independent judiciaries, no corruption. We need those countries to begin to build out that infrastructure. America has been trying to support them in that for years,” Pompeo said. “And yet, you see on our southern border, right here in the state of Texas, you see that it has not yet been successful.”
Pompeo, who was returning from a four-day trip visiting the border of Venezuela and meeting with South American leaders, said conditions in that oil-rich country continue to force thousands of Venezuelans to cross into Colombia to find work to feed their families.
Pompeo would not say if opposition leaders in Venezuela were asking the Trump administration to grant Temporary Protected Status to Venezuelans living in the U.S. without authorization. Over the past few years, about 3 million Venezuelans have left their homeland, with many settling in North Texas.
“This is the Maduro regime’s legacy, and it needs to end,” Pompeo said. “That’s what the opposition forces are focused on. That's what I hear them talk about when we communicate.”
