[Hoot Gibson]

Below is a surprisingly balanced article that recently appeared in USA Today concerning the Biden's failed immigration policy, as seen from the perspective of a long time Congressman who has represented hundreds of miles along the U.S.-Mexican border.

Rep. Henry Cuellar, one of Biden's harshest critics on the migrant surge, is urging White House to listen to border towns

LAREDO, Texas  – In a small park nestled between the Rio Grande River and an outlet mall, Rep. Henry Cuellar stood under a tree — one of the few spots offering relief from the sun on this 101-degree April afternoon — as he looked across the border towards Nuevo Laredo, Mexico.

The 65-year-old congressman, donning a tan button-down shirt and matching pants, lamented about the issues he’s seen in his community as an increased number of migrant children, families and adults make their way to the U.S.-Mexico border. American teenagers are being recruited by cartels to help smuggle people into the United States, ranch property is being destroyed, and now migrants are replacing drugs as the newest and most valuable commodity to smuggle into the country, he said.

“In Laredo, you have people that are trying to evade, single male adults, you got stash houses, you got people that are being crammed in the 18 wheelers,” he said during an interview with USA TODAY. “So a lot of times people only see the one that pulls out or at our heart, and that is the unaccompanied kids and the family. But what about the darker side? There is a darker side.”

The Democrat has emerged as one of President Joe Biden's harshest critics on the surge of migrants coming to the border, calling for relief for border towns shouldering the costs – financial and otherwise – of a record-level spike that has become a major partisan fight in Washington.

Months ago, Cuellar tried to warn Biden’s transition team about what was happening in his community, a city located less than a mile from the U.S.-Mexico border. But his warning didn't lead to much effort to address what was happening on the ground in South Texas, he said. For its part the administration has promised a more humane border policy than former President Donald Trump, focused on reuniting families, housing migrants so they don't have to make a dangerous trek home, and stemming the flow from Central America.

“My whole thing has been to the White House is, I want to be helpful. Let me know what we can do,” he said. “You got other border legislators who have done this before. This is not the first time we've seen this. We've seen it now, and we're gonna see it in the future. So we want to be as helpful as possible to them.”

Perhaps no one knows the issues facing the U.S.-Mexico border as intimately as Cuellar. For much of his life, he's had a unique vantage point as a resident of Laredo, a former Texas secretary of state and longtime border congressman. He has worked with several administrations on the impact increased migration to the United States’ southern border has had on communities and migrants. And as the Biden administration continues to grapple with the increased number of migrant children, families and adults, Cuellar has offered what he sees as a vital message for Biden: Listen to border communities.

The Texan, one of the most conservative Democrats in Congress, has represented portions of the Rio Grande Valley and Laredo for the past 16 years, including hundreds of miles of border.