Republican Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas ripped a national guardsman accused of smuggling an illegal immigrant during a Thursday Fox News appearance.
Savion Johnson was arrested Sunday for allegedly trying to smuggling an illegal immigrant over the southern border and was charged with smuggling of persons, evading arrest and unlawful carry of a weapon, according to NewsNation. Abbott tore into the individual, saying he considers him to be a “traitor.” (RELATED: Illegal Immigrant Deported 7 Times Arrested For Murder, Authorities Say)
“I consider this person to be a traitor, a criminal fighting back against what we’re trying to do in the state of Texas,” Abbott told “America’s Newsroom” co-hosts Dana Perino and Bill Hemmer. “We are using our national guard to repel and to stop illegal immigration. To have a member of the National Guard be involved in assisting illegal immigration is reprehensible. Know this: I just recently signed a law that increased the penalties for smuggling illegal immigrants to a mandatory minimum of 10 years behind bars.”
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“This person is a traitor to the cause and mission of the National Guard, will be hopefully put behind bars for more than 10 years,” Abbott continued. “But let me use this as a public information message. If there is anybody who comes in and smuggles illegal immigrants, and you’re gonna be caught, you’re gonna be spending a long time behind bars in Texas.”
Abbott signed Senate Bill 4, which makes illegal entry into Texas a state misdemeanor, into law on Dec. 18. The Justice Department announced in January it filed suit to stop enforcement of the law.
Border Patrol agents have encountered 849,469 migrants to date in fiscal year 2024, according to data released by United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP). There were approximately 2 million encounters in fiscal year 2023, 2.2 million encounters in fiscal year 2022 and 1.6 million in fiscal year 2021.
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