Greg Abbott Rebuked by Largest Texas Newspaper Over Migrant Deaths—'Coward'

Greg Abbott is facing strong criticism in his home state for his language on the border crisis.

An editorial in the Houston Chronicle slammed the Texas governor's comments about dealing with people coming across the border with Mexico, calling him a "coward" and an "embarrassment."

Abbott suggested to the conservative radio show host Dana Loesch that the Biden administration would "charge us with murder" if citizens began "shooting people who come across the border."

He later said his comments were because he was asked to make clear the legal red lines of what Texas could do to prevent migrant crossings.

"I was asked a question to legally distinguish between what Texas has the legal authority to do and what would be illegal to do," he told reporters. "I explained in detail all the different things that Texas is doing that we have the legal authority to do, and pointed out what would be illegal to do."

The furious editorial in the Chronicle, the Lone Star State's largest daily newspaper, branded Abbott "a small man who leeches power and satisfaction from the mistreatment and mockery of the vulnerable."

It added that Abbott was "endangering lives at the border."

The cutting diatribe against Abbott comes amid a strong backlash to his comments to Loesch and his handling of the border crisis. He was condemned after Customs and Border and Protection (CBP) officials were allegedly prevented from approaching a group of migrants, some of whom later drowned.

On January 12, CBP agents saw six migrants in distress trying to cross the Rio Grande river. The agents were then unsuccessful in contacting state officials and remained unable to access the area.

CBS News reported agents were stopped going into the Shelby Park migrant holding and processing area by Texas National Guard troops deployed by Abbott.

Three of the migrants, a woman and two children, aged eight and 10, drowned.

Shelby Park is near the city of Eagle Pass and its Mayor Rolando Salinas said the takeover of the park by the Texas Department of Public Safety as part of an emergency declaration was foisted upon them.

"That is not a decision that we agreed to," the mayor said in a Facebook video. "This is not something that we wanted. This is not something that we asked for as a city, I want to make that clear."

The incident ramped up tensions between Abbott and the Biden administration and a letter from Department of Homeland Security General Counsel Jonathan Meyer reported by CNN said Texas had "impeded operations of the Border Patrol."

Meyer wrote in the letter addressed to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton that the state had failed to provide access despite "instances of imminent danger to life and safety."

Newsweek has approached Abbott's and Paxton's offices for comment via email.

Condemnation of Abbott after the drowning tragedy was strong elsewhere. The Texas Democratic Party wrote in a post on X that Abbott is the state's "grim reaper."

The party added: "Aiding and abetting the death of children in the name of 'border security' is a bloodthirsty approach to governance that places our entire state in danger."

Congressman Henry Cuellar called the drowning incident a "tragedy" and something "the state bears responsibility for." This prompted a response from the the Texas Military Department, which said in a press release that reports of CBP agents asking for access to save the migrants in distress were "inaccurate."

Abbott added on X: "Turns out @RepCuellar (& some media) were so eager to point finger at Texas for drowning of migrants they forgot to get the facts."

Abbott's migrant controversies

Abbott has landed in hot water over his comments on the border before. In 2019, a leaflet for the governor's campaign called on people to "defend" Texas and "take matters into our own hands."

Campaign defenders said at the time the letter was normal campaign language, but it became controversial when a gunman shot 23 people in El Paso. The gunman made no mention of the state governor, but said he was concerned with a "Hispanic invasion."

Abbott has also faced some flack for his "Operation Lone Star" to tackle the "crisis at our southern border." Texas has used barbed wire, stacked shipping containers, and water buoys in an attempt to deter people from crossing.

Analysis by the Marshall Project, ProPublica and the Texas Tribune says the cost of the operation, which sees state troopers and the National Guard deployed, is around $2.5 million a week.

Part of Lone Star sees Texas busing or flying migrants to Democrat controlled cities elsewhere in the U.S.

This week, Democrat Governor of Illinois J.B. Pritzker published a letter in the Austin American-Statesman newspaper asking Abbott to stop.

"The next few days are a threat to the families and children you are sending here. I am pleading with you to at least pause these transports in order to save lives," Priztker wrote, saying that the recent cold weather in the U.S. was putting the lives of asylum seekers as risk.

In response, Abbott spokesperson Andrew Mahaleris told the Statesman that Priztker should call on President Joe Biden to "secure the border."

The border remains a contentious issue in Congress with this year's election approaching.