Business

Elon Musk To Visit Border Amid Massive Illegal Immigration Surge

Billionaire businessman Elon Musk said he’ll visit the southern border after talking to a GOP congressman about the severity of the immigration crisis, in a tweet posted Tuesday.

Musk said he will visit Eagle Pass, Texas, “later this week to see what’s going on for myself” after he spoke with Republican Texas Rep. Tony Gonzales. The area has seen thousands of migrants cross illegally in recent days, leading the mayor of Eagle Pass to declare a state of emergency.

“The city of Eagle Pass is committed to the safety and well being of local citizens. The emergency declaration grants us the ability to request financial resources to provide the additional services caused by the influx of the undocumented immigrants,” Democratic Eagle Pass Mayor Rolando Salinas said in a Sept.19 statement.

Musk has previously acknowledged the crisis at the border on Twitter before his Tuesday announcement. “I spoke with Rep Tony Gonzales tonight and he confirmed that it [the border crisis] is a serious issue. They are being overwhelmed by unprecedented numbers and just hit an all-time high and still growing!” Musk tweeted. “[I] am going to visit Eagle Pass later this week to see what’s going on for myself.”

Border Patrol recorded more than 1.8 million illegal crossings at the southern border between October 2022 and July, according to federal data. In fiscal year 2022, the number of illegal crossings hit a record 2.2 million. In August alone, Border Patrol recorded more than 181,000 illegal crossings in the region.

Additionally, Border Patrol arrested 151 illegal migrants whose names appeared on the national terrorism watchlist between October 2022 and August, according to federal data updated Friday.