NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) — Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office released a letter on Sunday addressing the state’s Republican congressional representatives, claiming that they have “taken no action” to help manage the migrant crisis.
Director of State Operations and Infrastructure Kathryn Garcia addressed the letter to the nine majority representatives of New York State, writing that they “have taken no action to help address this national crisis, and in fact waited until this past week to even reach out to our Administration and express your concerns.”
The letter was written in response to one sent to the governor on Jan. 26. In the address, the nine lawmakers expressed their shock that Hochul did not join the 25 governors who issued a statement of solidarity with Texas Gov. Greg Abbott in his pursuit of securing the border by “utilizing every tool and strategy, including razor wire fences.”
Days before the 25 signatories released their statement, Hochul led a nine-governor coalition that called on the White House and congressional leaders to take action on immigration.
“We strongly urge Congress and the Administration to quickly negotiate an agreement on a border security legislative package that includes federal coordination and decompression at the southern and northern borders; federal funding for both border and interior states and cities receiving new arrivals; and a serious commitment to modernizing our immigration system in the United States,” the Jan. 22 letter read.
In Saturday’s address, Garcia identified the work that Hochul has done on a state level to help manage the flow of 170,000 migrants into NYS, including her investment of $2 billion to date of State funds.
“Though Governor Hochul has spent months calling for significant federal aid, thus far you and your colleagues in the House Majority have refused to deliver,” Garcia wrote.
A bipartisan compromise is currently being negotiated in Congress, tying the issues of border policy and aid to Ukraine and Israel into one package. The package has been received with heavy skepticism, particularly from House Republicans.
In response to the question “Do you support the bipartisan immigration compromise currently being negotiated by your colleagues in the United States Congress?” that Garcia posited in her letter, Rep. Elise Stefanik did not hold back in a post on X.
“No, because unlike you Kathy, I don’t support amnesty. I support and voted for the Secure the Border Act (which you opposed),” Stefanik wrote in a quote of her original post criticizing the Hochul administration’s letter.
“Democrats are about to get walloped at the ballot box this November by angry New Yorkers who see through this laughable attempt by Democrats to orchestrate a false campaign to blame others for the border catastrophe their own Far Left policies created,” her original post stated.
The Jan. 26 letter from Republicans also called on Hochul to secure the northern border. In response, Garcia stated that state personnel have been working with federal agencies to “supplement existing enforcement efforts” at the behest of Hochul.
The national security package being negotiated in Congress would change the way that asylum seekers are processed at the southern border, but even if it makes it through the Senate, the measure would still need to be approved by the Republican-led House.