A spokesperson says over 400 migrants have been dropped off at various train stations across New Jersey, and police believe the arrivals are an attempt to bypass an executive order that governs how and when migrants can be dropped off in New York City. Mayor Michael Gonnelli of Secaucus called the tactic a “loophole” bus operators have found to allow migrants to reach New York City. Authorities said that the Texas governor was treating asylum seekers “like political pawns” by dropping families in surrounding areas “in the cold, dark of night with train tickets to travel to New York City”.
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy’s representative, Tyler Jones, told lehighvalleylive that New Jersey is being used as a transit point for migrants who continue on to New York City. New Jersey officials are working with local and federal authorities across the Hudson to coordinate their efforts to deal with this situation. But the Democratic mayors overseeing the affected cities have said they require more support and coordination from the federal government in addressing the influx of asylum seekers.
Adams, the mayor of New York City, wants more federal funds, efforts to expand work authorization and a schedule for when buses arrive in order to protect migrants and provide assistance in a more orderly way.
The New Jersey mayor confirmed the arrival of buses at the train station that brought more than 400 migrants to various New Jersey locations from Texas and Louisiana on Saturday. These migrants then traveled to New York City by train, after an executive order was signed by New York’s mayor requiring bus operators to provide at least 32 hours’ advance notice of arrivals and limit the hours of dropoffs. The spokesperson said that the Kansas governor is treating asylum seekers “like political pawns” by dropping families in surrounding areas “in the cold, dark of night with train tickets to travel to New York City”. Adams wants more federal funds, efforts to expand work authorization, and a schedule for when buses arrive to address the intensifying numbers of asylum-seekers.