Since Joe Biden effectively opened our Southern border, ending most of the effective Trump-era policies on illegal immigration, migrants have been flowing across the border in record numbers. Many liberal cities that once fancied themselves “sanctuary cities” are suddenly overrun and stretched to the limit with migrants.
Of course, these cities thought illegal migration was the problem of southern border states until Governors like Texas’ Greg Abbott and Florida’s Ron DeSantis decided to make them practice what they preach. Turns out cities like Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles were more talk than action.
Now, almost three years into the failing Biden Administration, these same liberal cities have hit the breaking point in terms of resources, space, and patience for the influx of migrants. Liberal New York City Mayor Eric Adams has been amongst the most vocal critics of Joe Biden as his city hits critical mass.
Recently, the city reported that massive budget cuts to some of the city’s most critical services would be necessary in order to continue to fund housing migrants. This has outraged many residents who want no more immigration and no cuts to education, sanitation, and police.
This week, Eric Adams went hat-in-hand to New York City’s elite in hopes of getting financial support. The day after unveiling budget cuts, Adams said: “This is a moment where it’s an all hands on deck moment. The way it goes, New York goes, America goes, but I’m going to need you more than ever to support many of these organizations like PAL, Robin Hood Foundation, and others. A moment where our philanthropic interests must align with some of the gaps and services that we are seeing today.”
It remains to be seen if Adam’s call to action will move the needle. After all, most of the city’s super-rich elites remain unaffected by the migrant crisis. The immigration issue has mostly affected the city’s working class and poor, as those are the people most reliant on the same resources being slashed.
The cuts that Adams announced were deep and profound. They include deep cuts to education, a hiring freeze within the already understaffed police department, and cuts to the sanitation department, among others. The city has spent $1.45 billion in 2023 towards migrants, with $11 billion expected for 2024 and 2025.
The cuts have drawn the ire of city teachers and the police union. Police union President Patrick Hendry said: “This is truly a disaster for every New Yorker who cares about safe streets. Cops are already stretched to our breaking point, and these cuts will return us to staffing levels we haven’t seen since the crime epidemic of the ‘80s and ‘90s. We cannot go back there. We need every level of government to work together to find a way to support police officers and protect New York City’s thirty years of public safety progress.”
The city has called on Washington for relief, only to have requests fall on deaf ears, leading Adams to criticize the White House on more than one occasion roundly. Now, as Biden and company scramble to add to border operations, it appears to be too little, too late.
The genie is out of the bottle and isn’t likely to be returned until 2024 at the earliest. In the meantime, New York City, among others, can deal with the crisis they voted for in 2020.
"*" indicates required fields