WASHINGTON _ President Donald Trump, during a fundraising stop in San Antonio on Wednesday, asserted that without his tough border security policies, murderous migrants "will probably stay at your house."
He vowed to send more troops to the border to address a surge in migration from Central America, saying that Texas ranchers fear being killed or having cars stolen by migrants, and "this never comes out in the fake news."
"Who the hell can live like this?" he said. "Dangerous people are coming here and the good people are dying."
Trump's frustration at the migrant surge has boiled over. Within the last week he ousted Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and dropped his nominee to lead Immigration and Customs Enforcement, saying he wanted to move in a "tougher direction."
But complaints about policies forcing long delays for cross-border cargo grew louder during his short visit to Texas. And his claims about crime along the border are wildly exaggerated. State and federal data does not back up assertions that migrants in previous years or in the current surge commit crimes at elevated rates, though Trump and his backers argue that any crime committed by someone in the United States without permission should not have occurred.
Roughly 5,000 uniformed personnel are currently at the border, including from the National Guard. Trump ordered the deployment a year ago.
"I'm going to have to call up more military," he said with Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick at his side during a meeting with campaign donors in San Antonio.
He expressed irritation that long-standing federal law _ the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878 _ bars the use of military for law enforcement.
"Our military, don't forget, can't act like a military would act. Because if they got a little rough, everybody would go crazy," Trump said. " ... They have all these horrible laws that the Democrats won't change. ... I think they will pay a very big price in 2020 for all of the things, whether it is the fake witch hunt they start out, or whether it is a situation like this. I think the border is going to be an incredible issue."
Trump was in Texas for fundraisers in San Antonio and Houston that national GOP chairwoman Ronna McDaniel told reporters aboard Air Force One would raise $6 million.
At a campaign-style event in suburban Houston, Trump signed an executive order that will make it harder for states to use concerns about water quality to block pipeline projects. And he teased Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush, who had backed his campaign despite Trump's needling of his father, Jeb Bush, during the 2016 GOP primaries as "low energy Jeb."
George P. Bush's father opposed Trump's election, as did his uncle and grandfather, the former Presidents George W. and George H.W. Bush.
"This is the only Bush that likes me. This is the only one," Trump said, urging Bush to the podium for a handshake. "He's a friend of my son. And he's a great guy. Truly, this is the Bush that got it right. ... He's going far. He's going places."
With the Border Patrol unable to keep up with the current surge of asylum-seekers, the Department of Homeland Security has shifted 750 customs agents to help _ 300 of them from ports of entry in South Texas, according to Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo.
That has created huge delays for cargo, tourists and workers at crossings in Laredo and other border cities that rely heavily on trade.
"I have talked to a lot of folks on the border and I have seen the long lines. They send me drone pictures and videos," Cuellar said, adding that Trump touts his business acumen but isn't acting as though he understands business. "You don't cut off the supply chain for thousands of companies in the United States."
Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, echoed that point. While the migrant situation may require a personnel shift, he said, the policy has created a "risk of a huge economic impact on the border economy, and on Texas and on the country."
"I was on the phone yesterday with a number of constituents along the border, who fear terrible damage to the border economy, because the bridges and the ports of entry are being clogged," Cornyn said. "Tourists and other legitimate trade are being stymied or stopped entirely along the border. Some of the car manufacturers for example that depend on the trailer truck activity for their supply chain are being forced to wait, hour upon hour upon hour."
He wrote acting Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan on Wednesday complaining of wait times topping seven hours at some crossings. "The diversion of frontline CBP personnel from these ports, and the threat of a possible closure in the future, threatens to have a debilitating impact on the overall health of Texas' economy," he wrote.
The Texas Border Coalition also wrote to McAleenan, noting that Semana Santa _ Holy Week _ is looming, and the long delays threaten to deter Mexican visitors.
"The week represents as large a boost in retail sales for our region as the Christmas holiday does for most of the rest of the country," wrote Laredo Mayor Pete Saenz, who chairs the coalition. "We understand the importance of border security, including at the ports of entry. We strongly believe we can secure the border without impeding the free flow of legitimate trade and tourism that is crucial for our economy."
Patrick, who chaired Trump's campaign effort in Texas, took a day off from presiding over the state Senate to join the president. He greeted Trump on the tarmac in San Antonio when Trump landed just before noon, and sat beside him at a roundtable with donors as he talked about border security with the news media.
Gov. Greg Abbott met Trump when he landed in Houston just before 3 p.m.
Before leaving the White House, Trump said he views the special counsel inquiry as a "witch hunt" and a case of "treason" because Democrats had sought to use it as a way to illegally force him from office.
Treason carries the death penalty, and his view is not widely accepted by legal scholars.
"This was an attempted coup. This was an attempted take-down of a president," he said before boarding Marine One.
Steve Vladeck, a law professor at the University of Texas who specializes in national security law, was among the experts rejecting Trump's use of the term "treason" to describe an inquiry housed within the Department of Justice. He noted that the Constitution provides a narrow definition "to prevent those in power from using it to attack their political opponents."
Before leaving the White House, Trump insisted that Attorney General William Barr should open an investigation into "the origins of exactly where this all started," asserting that Americans "hunger" for such an inquiry, particularly those who voted for him.
"Because this was an illegal witch hunt and everybody knew it. And they knew it too and they got caught. And what they did was treason. ... What they did was against our Constitution and everything we stand for," Trump said.
In San Antonio, Trump met with donors at The Argyle _ a party venue that has served as headquarters for a sprawling horse ranch, a Confederate arsenal and guest house for the likes of Robert E. Lee _ before speaking at a closed-door lunch at a joint fundraiser to benefit his campaign and the RNC.
Julian Castro, a former San Antonio mayor and housing secretary during the second term of Barack Obama, is organizing a "Texas United Against Hate" rally at San Antonio's Hemisfair Park on Wednesday night as a show of force against Trump, though the president left hours earlier.
The state Democratic Party also promoted that rally.
"It doesn't matter how much Donald Trump raises from wealthy Republicans and corporate interests, Texans are fighting back and his poll numbers are plummeting. Texas is the biggest battleground state," Texas Democratic Party chairman Gilberto Hinojosa said. "Texans won't sit idly by as Trump steals our land, destroys our healthcare, and threatens to shut down our economy. ... In 2020, we will defeat Trump and (Sen. John) Cornyn and turn Texas blue."
Trump spent roughly three hours in San Antonio before heading to Houston. His schedule included a fundraising dinner at the Lone Star Flight Museum, after a visit to nearby Crosby, and the International Union of Operating Engineers International Training and Education Center, where he signed two executive orders.
