Failed Texas Democratic senatorial, gubernatorial, and presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke joined MSNBC’s Friday edition of Jose Diaz-Balart Reports to discuss the situation at the border and to accuse Gov. Greg Abbott of having “blood on his hands” and inspiring “white nationalist terrorists.” All the while, Diaz-Balart either sat silently as O’Rourke made these outrageous accusations or joined O’Rourke in pushing President Biden to counter Abbott.
The genesis for the segment was, as Diaz-Balart reported, “A DOJ spokesperson tells NBC News that the Justice Department is assessing claims by a Texas state trooper who alleges that state troopers were under orders to deny migrants water, instructed to push migrants back into the water, to send them back to Mexico.”
While Diaz-Balart did also report these are just allegations, “The Texas Department of Public Safety says it is investigating the allegations but denies treating migrants inhumanely,” he was still happy to assume they are true.
After introducing O’Rourke, the insults began flying, “You said that what the Texas Governor Abbott is doing along the border is ‘criminal.’ What'd you mean by that?”
O’Roruke insisted that “placing a floating barrier” is “effectively a drowning device” and illegal. Additionally, he also just assumed the allegations against Texas DPS are true, “They've also placed barrels wrapped in razor wire under the surface of the river. Migrants and asylum seekers are becoming entangled and entrapped in this. And as you pointed out, DPS troopers are literally pushing those migrants, including children and infants, back into the river in exposed conditions where the temperature has been over 100 degrees not for days but for weeks.”
Diaz-Balart did not interrupt to point out that is not what he said. He reported there was a claim and a counterclaim that states any so such policy exists. This allowed O’Rourke to continue unchallenged, “Jose, so far this year, 26 asylum seekers, including infants and children, have died. Many of them have drowned. Greg Abbott has blood on his hands. But we can't stop at criticizing the governor.”
After O’Rourke implored Biden to “enforce federal law, to honor our treaty obligations with Mexico, and to protect the lives of these asylum seekers who literally have no other place to go,” he accused Abbott of inspiring terrorism:
The last time I saw you in person, Jose, in El Paso, was just after the massacre in El Paso, Texas, August 3rd, 2019. Twenty-three people ultimately were killed by a man who was compelled to come to this community to stop, in his own words, the Hispanic invasion of Texas. When we militarize the border and treat defenseless, vulnerable refugees as though they're an invading army, we supercharge these white nationalist terrorists who do things like the murder in El Paso in 2019.
After O’Rourke once again demanded Biden stop Abbott, Diaz-Balart returned, not to object to wild rhetoric, ask what he would do instead, or to suggest that human smugglers have blood on their hands, but to piggyback on the appeals to Biden, “But what is it that you think the president should or could be doing now?”
O’Rourke replied by repeating his earlier answer about removing the buoys and razor wire in the river. As for Diaz-Balart, his failure to correct O’Rourke on three separate occasions again calls MSNBC’s alleged high standards of facts in question.
This segment was sponsored by Google.
Here is a transcript for the July 21 show:
MSNBC Jose Diaz Balart Reports
7/21/2023
11:39 PM ET
JOSE DIAZ-BALART: Thirty-nine past the hour. An update on the humanitarian crisis at the border. A DOJ spokesperson tells NBC News that the Justice Department is assessing claims by a Texas state trooper who alleges that state troopers were under orders to deny migrants water, instructed to push migrants back into the water, to send them back to Mexico. The Texas Department of Public Safety says it is investigating the allegations but denies treating migrants inhumanely. Joining us is former Congressman Beto O’Rourke. He is from El Paso and Beto, it's good to see you. I appreciate you being with us this morning. You said that what the Texas Governor Abbott is doing along the border is “criminal.” What'd you mean by that?
BETO O’ROURKE: Everything that he's doing right now, especially around Eagle Pass, is illegal, placing a floating barrier, for example. It's a series of buoys that are connected with netting under water. It's effectively a drowning device. The governor and the head of Texas DPS have admitted as much and have said, well, maybe this will deter people from even trying to cross.
They've also placed barrels wrapped in razor wire under the surface of the river. Migrants and asylum seekers are becoming entangled and entrapped in this. And as you pointed out, DPS troopers are literally pushing those migrants, including children and infants, back into the river in exposed conditions where the temperature has been over 100 degrees not for days but for weeks.
Jose, so far this year, 26 asylum seekers, including infants and children, have died. Many of them have drowned. Greg Abbott has blood on his hands. But we can't stop at criticizing the governor.
We must continue to look for solutions. And those solutions can only be found in one place. That is in the Biden Administration. His administration has the responsibility to enforce federal law, to honor our treaty obligations with Mexico, and to protect the lives of these asylum seekers who literally have no other place to go. And one last important thing -- the last time I saw you in person, Jose, in El Paso, was just after the massacre in El Paso, Texas--
DIAZ-BALART: Yup.
O'ROURKE: -- August 3rd, 2019.
Twenty-three people ultimately were killed by a man who was compelled to come to this community to stop, in his own words, the Hispanic invasion of Texas. When we militarize the border and treat defenseless, vulnerable refugees as though they're an invading army, we supercharge these white nationalist terrorists who do things like the murder in El Paso in 2019. So the president must step in. I know that he wants to. I know that he can.
Sometimes it just takes public pressure to get someone like President Biden to do the right thing and so I'm asking my fellow Americans to step up and join me in asking the president to step in and do something in Texas and do it now.
DIAZ-BALART: And so, Beto, what do you think the president could be doing that he's not doing? And, you know, there are, the governor of the state of Texas controls the National Guard of his state. There is certainly a lot of power that the governor has to do what he's doing. Maybe not, maybe. But what is it that you think the president should or could be doing now?
O’ROURKE: The Constitution and federal law both empower and mandate the president to remove the buoys that are in the middle of the Rio Grande River Channel, clearly illegal, under the purview of the International Boundary and Water Commission. Those have to be pulled up immediately. Again, those are drowning devices, and mark my words, people will drown because they have been placed in the river channel.
Remove the razor wire that's on the riverbanks that's impeding Customs and Border Protection, the border patrol agents from doing their job of securing and protecting the border and also rendering humanitarian aid.
That is part of their job mission, and they're unable to do it. An internal CBP memo that has recently been revealed shows DPS troopers, these are Abbott's people, are preventing border patrol agents from doing their job.
So there's a clear conflict here, and only one level of government can come out on top, and it has to be the federal government. Everyone understands that's the law in the United States of America. And President Biden must enforce that law.
And we clearly expect him to do that. I think ultimately he will. But sooner the better because people's lives are at stake. And, again, just within one county, Maverick County near Eagle Pass, Texas, we have lost 26 migrants and asylum seekers--
DIAZ-BALART: Yup.
O'ROURKE: -- so far. More will die if the president does not step in.
