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* From the governor’s press conference this morning…
Mary Ann Ahern: Can we talk about migrants, and are you prepared if Governor Abbott does send 25,000 migrants here before the DNC or during it?
Governor Pritzker: As you know, we have a partnership with Cook County and with the City of Chicago. There was an awful lot of planning that went into effect back in the early part of this year. And we’re excited about the Democratic National Convention coming. We’re also excited to have this partnership in place, as you know, and you can go to the City of Chicago’s website to see how many beds are currently occupied, how many beds are available, and also that we have a plan for expanding that if necessary.
So far, we have not seen the influx that we might have expected. And one of the reasons for that is because, despite the fact that Donald Trump told Republicans to walk away from an immigration bill that would have helped us actually secure the border, that the President has nevertheless put in place a series of agreements with countries throughout Central America and North America, including Mexico, to make sure that that we’ve stemmed the tide of border crossings.
And so actually, we’ve seen some of the lowest numbers of border crossings in the last two years, over the last several months. And I check on that weekly, talk to the White House and others, to make sure that that’s still the case.
MAA: Are your sources [that have been] talking back and forth, is Abbott just a threat or might that really happen?
Pritzker: Well, of course, we have a governor in Texas who cares nothing for the human beings who are have crossed the border, who are in his state. He frankly, ships them all across the country, including to Chicago. Threatened to do it again when he was at the RNC, but we have not seen any evidence of him increasing the numbers that have been sent to the City of Chicago.
I asked Pritzker about that not long ago and he said mostly the same thing. I would also note that the logistics of busing 25,000 people here in the next few weeks would be difficult. The convention will end 25 days from now, so that’s 1,000 people a day, every day, which is well beyond anything the city has ever before seen.
* Also, the city’s predictions haven’t always turned out to be accurate. This is from the end of January…
Looking to the future, [Beatriz Ponce de Leon, deputy mayor for Immigrant, Migrant and Refugee Rights] said the city is projecting another 800 people arriving per week, based on historical data. As summer approaches, those numbers could go up to 1,200 arrivals a week, which the city has experienced before, she said.
That didn’t happen. Not even close. The shelter census last week was 5,621, down from 14,900 at the end of December.
The city currently has 5,000 empty beds, according to the Tribune.
* Not saying it won’t happen, not saying it can’t happen. Just saying.
…Adding… And, just to be clear, this is what I wrote in comments…
Oh, I figure he’ll pull some sort of stunt next month. I’m just not convinced that he can pull off 25k people.
posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Jul 29, 24 @ 1:29 pm
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My guess is this is just attention seeking by Abbott. He had his moment about a year ago.
Comment by Friendly Bob Adams Monday, Jul 29, 24 @ 1:36 pm
===He had his moment about a year ago. ===
Oh, I figure he’ll pull some sort of stunt next month. I’m just not convinced that he can pull off 25k people.
Comment by Rich Miller Monday, Jul 29, 24 @ 1:41 pm
The reality is that he doesn’t have the people to shuttle around anymore. Border crossings have decreased massively and I think for many migrants word has spread that Texas’ tall tales about Chicago having resources available aren’t realistic. He’ll definitely pull of a stunt, but another thing to consider is the security zone around the DNC is massive. He won’t exactly be able to drop people off outside the doors.
That being said, the GOP media machine isn’t exactly based in facts. FOX News could turn one bus into a breaking news story…
Comment by NIU Grad Monday, Jul 29, 24 @ 1:56 pm
===FOX News could turn one bus into a breaking news story===
Yep.
Comment by Rich Miller Monday, Jul 29, 24 @ 2:11 pm