AUSTIN, Texas — Texas is already crowdfunding a border wall between the state and Mexico, and now it’s requesting donations as migrants are bused to Washington, D.C.

What You Need To Know

  • Texas is now requesting donations for the state-sponsored buses that are transporting migrants to Washington, D.C.

  • The first busload of migrants arrived in the nation’s capital on April 13, and numerous trips have been made since

  • The state is accepting donations via check and credit card. Any money not used for transportation will go toward the border wall being constructed at the Texas-Mexico border

  • The program remains controversial. Rep. Sylvia Garcia, D-Houston, earlier in April referred to it as a “political stunt”

Gov. Greg Abbott announced the busing plan in response to the Biden administration ending the Trump-era Title 42 border policy. The public health policy—which limits asylum at the border in order to curb the spread if COVID-19—is slated to end May 23. It’s expected that will increase border crossings. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has sued to block the policy’s rescission.

The first state-sponsored bus full of migrants arrived in the nation’s capital from Texas on April 13, and many buses have been chartered since.

“Texas is providing charter buses to send these illegal immigrants who have been dropped off by the Biden administration to Washington, D.C.,” Abbott said. “We are sending them to the United States Capitol where the Biden administration will be able to more immediately address the needs of the people that they are allowing to come across our border.”

It turns out the more than 1,500-mile trip is not cheap.

Donations are now being sought via check or credit card. According to the donation site, any unused transportation funding will go toward the border wall.

Not everyone is on board with busing migrants to Washington.  

“The very idea that he thinks he should get involved… Put them [migrants] on a bus paid for by our taxpayers, all the way up here to Washington, D.C. to just make a political point. It’s just a political stunt. And it’s worse. It’s shameful, because we’re talking about families, we’re talking about children. People that are fleeing violence or fleeing poverty,” Rep. Sylvia Garcia, D-Houston, said.

The program is entirely voluntary. No migrant can be made to board a bus.

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