Beto O鈥橰ourke had called for an end to Title 42 for months.
He said the emergency health order from the federal government, which allows officials to turn away migrants at the border to control spread of COVID-19, was ineffective and has led to mass repeat crossings which overwhelm an already overworked Border Patrol staff.
But earlier this week, O鈥橰ourke raised some eyebrows. He called on the White House not to end the health order until it had laid out a plan to help border communities deal with the increase of migrants expected after its end in May.
O鈥橰ourke鈥檚 comment confused and confounded some immigrant advocates who are typically on his side.
鈥淸Beto O鈥橰ourke], buddy, Border Patrol processed 10,000 Ukrainians in a week!鈥� tweeted RAICES, the Texas nonprofit that provides immigration legal services. 鈥淪hould they have waited in Mexico while you try and figure out a plan for them?鈥�
Mario Carrillo, the campaigns manager for the progressive pro-immigration group America鈥檚 Voice, said it sounded like O鈥橰ourke wanted to keep Title 42 in place.
鈥淚f his position is that we should eliminate Title 42 鈥� and he has expressed that before 鈥� we certainly support him in that,鈥� Carrillo said. 鈥淚 think it鈥檚 important that Democrats are clear on the fact that Title 42 has not worked and it, in fact, has led to more chaos.鈥�
O鈥橰ourke has since clarified that he firmly supports ending the pandemic-era health order, even as his opponents have cast him as a flip-flopper. But the responses to his position illustrate the challenge O鈥橰ourke faces as he tries to take on the issues of border security and immigration, which have taken center stage throughout his run for Texas governor.
For Gov. , the border is an easy issue to campaign around, as it regularly ranks as the top priority for Texas voters, especially Republicans. Abbott has for months focused his political capital on the border, initiating construction of a state-funded border wall, deploying thousands of members of the Texas National Guard and most recently, requiring state inspections of commercial vehicles passing into Texas, which has snarled trade with Mexico.
But for Democrats, especially in Texas, tackling these issues is more difficult. O鈥橰ourke has had to distance himself from President Joe Biden鈥檚 border policies, while going after Abbott鈥檚.
鈥淚鈥檓 from the border. I understand this,鈥� said O鈥橰ourke, who is from El Paso and represented the area in Congress for six years. 鈥淭he people from Texas understand this and I know that we're all looking for a real solution. We鈥檙e not getting it from Greg Abbott. We鈥檙e not getting it from the Biden administration either. What we need is leadership.鈥�
Cal Jillson, a political scientist at Southern Methodist University, said Republicans have an advantage in talking about border security because the majority of their party agrees that there should be stricter enforcement. But among Democrats, there is a wider variety of thought. Some Democrats on the border want to be tougher on the issue, but there are many in the party鈥檚 coalition who advocate for more humane treatment of migrants and against any stricter enforcement of immigration laws.
In his recent comments, O鈥橰ourke is trying to advocate for both, which is a difficult message to pull off, Jillson said.
鈥淗is message is about as good as it can be for a Democrat but it's complex and has to be explained in a couple of paragraphs, and by that time people get confused and they're not sure exactly what you said,鈥� Jillson said. 鈥淭he ideal policy position for a political race is bumper sticker in length where people can understand you by the third word and are nodding with you.鈥�
Biden is doing O鈥橰ourke no favors. Polls show the president remains unpopular in Texas, and often his approval rating among voters on the border is worse than his overall approval rating.
Only 31% of Texas voters approved of Biden鈥檚 handling of the border in a mid-February poll from the Dallas Morning News and the University of Texas at Tyler. Fifty-six percent disapproved. Meanwhile, 50% of voters approved of Abbott鈥檚 performance on the border and 40% disapproved.
On the first day of his campaign, O鈥橰ourke gave a TV interview , saying it is 鈥渘ot enough of a priority for his administration.鈥� But the border was otherwise not a large part of his first weeks as a gubernatorial candidate. He did not mention the topic in his launch video, and his stump speeches often centered on other, less polarizing issues, like expanding Medicaid and legalizing marijuana.
But in late December, in the failures of Abbott鈥檚 highly touted border mission, Operation Lone Star, where military news outlets were reporting pay problems and suicides that appeared tied to the mission.
鈥淕ov. Abbott is the commander-in-chief of the Texas National Guard. If he chooses to deploy those under his command, it is his duty to pay them, deliver the benefits he promised them, and ensure they receive proper mental health support in order to prevent the kind of tragedy we鈥檝e seen in recent months,鈥� he wrote in an . 鈥淎nd if he can鈥檛 justify their deployment, he owes it to them and their families to send them home.鈥�
O鈥橰ourke has continued to hammer Abbott over Operation Lone Star and has also criticized as political stunts his decision to bus migrants to Washington, D.C., and bring international trade to a halt through commercial vehicle inspections. On Friday, Abbott announced he鈥檇 with the last of the four Mexican governors whose land borders Texas to bring the inspections to an end.
But Abbott鈥檚 team has hit right back. This week, the governor鈥檚 campaign blasted O鈥橰ourke for his change of tune on Title 42.
鈥淏eto continues to take different positions on issues depending on which part of the state he happens to be in,鈥� Abbott campaign spokesperson Mark Miner said in a statement. 鈥溾�楤oth Ways Beto鈥� strikes again!鈥�
O鈥橰ourke has said he wants to support Border Patrol agents who are seeing large numbers of migrants at the border by working together with law enforcement agencies in border communities. But he also wants them to work with nonprofits that aid migrants and to make it easier for asylum-seekers to go through the process.
He鈥檚 also suggested pushing for a guest worker program at the national and federal level and said border issues shouldn鈥檛 be limited to immigration. He wants to provide economic development to border regions by investing in infrastructure to facilitate the kind of international trade that has been stalled by Abbott鈥檚 order to inspect every commercial vehicle that crosses the ports of entry.
Republicans scoff at the idea that O鈥橰ourke can gain anything politically from the border in the current environment. Those Republicans include former U.S. Rep. Will Hurd of Helotes, a moderate who went on a famous road trip with O鈥橰ourke in 2017. When he was in Congress, Hurd represented a district that covered hundreds of miles of Texas-Mexico border.
Hurd flatly said no Tuesday when asked after an appearance in San Antonio whether Abbott was giving O鈥橰ourke an opening to compete on border issues due to some of Abbott鈥檚 policies.
鈥淭he Republicans are going to have near 鈥� if not record 鈥� turnout in Latino communities because Democrats have been absolutely idiotic when it comes to border security,鈥� Hurd said.
Hurd said that after the midterms, Republicans could control as many as four out of the five congressional seats on the Texas-Mexico border. One of them is already held by a Republican, Rep. of San Antonio, while national Republicans are targeting three more in November.
鈥淚t鈥檚 unprecedented,鈥� Hurd said, 鈥渁nd so no Democratic official at any level in this next cycle is going to be able to use the issue of border security in their favor.鈥�
In taking on border issues so prominently, O鈥橰ourke is trying to change the narrative around his party and set out his vision for how Texas Democrats should tackle the issue with himself as the leading voice, said Sharon Navarro, a political scientist at the University of Texas at San Antonio.
But that is a difficult task in a Democratic Party that is stubbornly divided over border security.
鈥淭he Democrat border stance can't be 鈥榊ou all come,鈥欌�� said Jillson. 鈥淭here has to be more nuance to it, but that nuance then draws criticism from the part of the Democratic coalition most concerned about immigrant rights.鈥�
Some South Texas Democrats, like U.S. Reps. of Laredo and of McAllen, had urged Biden to keep Title 42 in place. State Rep. of Eagle Pass 鈥� a Democrat who represents the largest stretch of the border in the House 鈥� also opposes the end of Title 42.
In the top Democratic primary runoff this May in South Texas 鈥� for the 15th Congressional District 鈥� the candidates disagree on Title 42. Michelle Vallejo has advocated against it, while Ruben Ramirez has said it is to end it.
O鈥橰ourke has emphasized he is listening to local leaders when it comes to border issues. But what about the South Texas Democrats who disagree with him on Title 42?
鈥淚鈥檓 reaching out to them,鈥� O鈥橰ourke said in a recent interview, naming Morales as one of the people he was talking to. 鈥淓ven though he and I are both from border communities, there鈥檚 a lot I can learn from him about Eagle Pass and about Del Rio 鈥� and we may not agree on every given policy proposal, but we both agree that we want to see border rule of law, people who come to this country following our laws and then we would love to see the country take the lead in rewriting our laws鈥� on immigration.
Texas Democrats, though, cannot even agree there is a problem on the border 鈥� and if there is, the extent of it.
鈥淭here was no 鈥榖order crisis鈥� until Governor Abbott went and created one himself,鈥� state Rep. Erin of Dripping Springs said in a tweet Thursday that was later deleted.
Ramirez, the congressional candidate, told a local media outlet that 鈥渨e have an immigration crisis and we need to be honest with ourselves and call it what it is.鈥�
O鈥橰ourke himself has avoided labeling the situation a 鈥渃risis鈥� and has said National Guard troops are being sent to address 鈥渁 solution in search of a problem.鈥� Abbott鈥檚 campaign has highlighted that comment in near-daily news releases this month under the headline, 鈥淏eto鈥檚 Big Border Denial.鈥�
And in an interview, he said he disagrees with the notion that Democrats are divided over the issue and said voters appreciate a nuanced policy.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 part of the problem we have with American politics,鈥� he said. 鈥淪o many people assume that voters are dumb. I don鈥檛. They鈥檙e very smart [and are] looking for real answers. They want real answers and real solutions.鈥�
