DC Mayor Requested Federal Assistance for Bussed Texas Migrants

Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser requested federal assistance in managing asylum-seeking migrants bussed to the nation’s capital by Texas and Arizona.

In a July 19 letter, Bowser requested 150 D.C. National Guard personnel to assist non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in staffing processing and housing centers, as well as a “suitable federal location” for additional processing. D.C. had already facilitated about $1 million in FEMA grants for the NGOs. However, Bowser did not receive a response to her request by Thursday, NBC Washington reported. 

Bowser wrote that over 4,000 migrants had arrived in D.C. on nearly 200 buses. “Tragically, many families arrive in Washington, DC with nowhere to go … With pledges from Texas and Arizona to continue these abhorrent operations indefinitely, the situation is dire, and we consider this a humanitarian crisis,” Bowser added. Meanwhile, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said D.C. “finally understands what Texans have been dealing with every single day, as our communities are overrun and overwhelmed by thousands of illegal immigrants thanks to President Biden’s open border policies.”

Coverage was more prominently featured by right-rated outlets like Fox News (Right bias), which highlighted “outrage from border officials” and appeared to frame Bowser as hypocritical for using the word “crisis.” Meanwhile, The Washington Post (Lean Left bias) highlighted aid groups who said Bowser was trying to “militarize” the problem.