Psaki says Texas governor doesn’t have authority for ‘publicity stunt’ plan to bus migrants to DC

White House press secretary accused Texas Gov Greg Abbott of promising an illegal “publicity stunt” on Thursday after the Republican governor vowed that he would place undocumented migrants on chartered buses to Washington DC.

The governor made headlines in right-leaning media and thrilled conservatives this week when he pledged that he would respond to the Biden administration’s end of Title 42 directives that allow DHS to turn back migrants at the border by forcing undocumented immigrants to board buses and be essentially shipped out of his state, across the country.

Ms Psaki was asked about the governor’s announcement at her daily news briefing by Fox News correspondent Peter Doocy. In her response, she pointed out that no Texas official, including the governor, had the legal authority to forcibly move persons out of their state, enforce federal immigration law, or even take any official actions across state lines.

“Well I’m not aware of what authority the governor would be doing that under, I think it’s pretty clear that this is a publicity stunt,” she quipped.

She went on to note that Mr Abbott’s own staff has admitted that such trips would have to be wholly voluntary, as the governor can not forcibly move people around the US.

The Texas governor is one of a growing number of Republicans who have fought the Biden administration on the issue of migration; the White House faced a sharp divide over the issue of whether Title 42 should be suspended.

Immigration has remained a hot-button issue for the party, which has largely argued that the tough anti-migrant policies of the Trump administration including family separation should be resumed under President Joe Biden’s leadership. Mr Biden rolled back a number of immigration policies upon taking office that advocates for migrants said were dehumanising but that proponents claimed were effective in deterring migration.

The GOP has stated very clearly its intent to make the issue a campaign topic as the party seeks to retake the House and Senate this year.

Texas has been the site of some major battles over the issue of immigration including last year when thousands of Haitian migrants arrived in Del Rio, Texas, at the US border and camped out for weeks before most were expelled and some were admitted to the US on at least a temporary basis.