Donald Trump tweeted he has “alerted” US borderpatrol and the military to the caravan of thousands of migrants travelling through Mexico to reach the US.
“Sadly, it looks like Mexico’s Police and Military are unable to stop the Caravan heading to the Southern Border,” he wrote after Mexican riot police could not contain throngs of desperate migrants with barricades and tear gas.
The president has repeatedly called for immigration law reform in light of the influx of undocumented immigrants fleeing rampant gang violence and poverty in Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador tweeting: "I have alerted Border Patrol and Military that this is a National Emergy. Must change laws!"
“Criminals and unknown Middle Easterners are mixed in,” the president wrote, part of his continued rhetoric on the dangers of illegal immigration at the border.
He has been speaking about the issue at dozens of political rallies across the country ahead of the 6 November midterm elections.
“Every time you see a Caravan, or people illegally coming, or attempting to come, into our Country illegally, think of and blame the Democrats for not giving us the votes to change our pathetic Immigration Laws!,” Mr Trump said, as a reminder to his base of voters.
The sentiments are echoed in his now infamous campaign rally line: “Democrats create mobs, we create jobs”.
The president also restated his threat to cut off foreign aid to Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, much of which is aimed at violence prevention and poverty reduction.
According to the US Agency for International Development (USAID) the US currently gives Honduras nearly $128m, Guatemala $297m, and El Salvador $75m in aid across all federal agencies mostly aimed towards counter-narcotics activities, military training, agricultural subsidies, and violence prevention.
Mexican officials also issued their own warning to the caravan, stating only those who met the country’s standards for refugee status would be allowed to enter at its southern border but to no avail.
Several people rushed a bridge gate at the border between Guatemala and Mexico or crossed the Suchiate River to enter. As crowds persisted, Mexican police did allow women and children to enter and seek refuge.
A similar caravan of approximately 1,500 people had made its approach at the beginning of April 2018, just weeks before the Trump administration began its family separation policy and putting National Guard troops along the 2,000-mile US-Mexico border.
The separation policy stemmed from a zero-tolerance approach to illegal immigration where all adults face prosecution, even if it means removing them from infants travelling with them.
Several of the migrants who had crossed without documentation were seeking asylum, which requires physical entry into the US before an application for the protected status can be considered per American immigration laws.
The Trump administration continues carrying out its bid to build a large border wall, the funding for which is still up for debate in Congress.
