Mayor Eric Adams is embroiled in another war of words with Texas Gov. Greg Abbott over the ongoing flow of migrants to New York City — a costly issue that Adams has blamed on Republicans as well as President Joe Biden.
Adams issued a statement on Monday saying that Abbott was using thousands of migrants at the southern border, many of whom are fleeing violence and poverty, to “hurt Black-run cities.” City budget officials have estimated that the migrant crisis will cost taxpayers more than $4 billion over the next two years.
The mayor pushed back against a New York Post story that claimed he was playing the “race card.” While speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Adams checked off a list of sanctuary cities led by Black mayors.
“I cannot ignore the fact that Gov. Abbott sent migrants only to cities with Black mayors,” he said.
Adams also revisited his growing frustration over the lack of federal intervention and significant aid, citing the “failure of Washington, D.C.” that has affected all of the cities receiving and caring for migrants.
City officials are bracing for the lifting of Title 42, a pandemic-inspired public health order that allows U.S. officials to refuse entry to migrants who enter without permission, on May 11.
Abbott fired back at Adams in a statement to Gothamist, saying that migrants sign a voluntary consent form in which they agree on their destination.
"Mayor Adams is once again spreading falsehoods and outright lies. He knows full well these migrants willingly chose to go to New York City,” Abbott said.
In what may prove to be an awkward position for Adams, Abbott also seized on the mayor’s criticisms of Biden, a fellow Democrat.
“And the mayor is right — the federal government should step in and provide support as the crisis is more than one city can handle,” Abbott said. ”But they should address the true crisis along the southern border and help support the small Texas border towns dealing with the direct burden of the Biden administration's open border policies.”
