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by IANS |
Washington, Dec 26 (IANS) Busloads of migrants were dropped off outside the US Vice President Kamala Harris' official residence at the US Naval Observatory in Washington, D.C. this weekend.
More than 100 migrants -- including women and children -- reportedly arrived in three buses at the Naval Observatory amid historically frigid temperatures on Saturday night, reports Xinhua news agency.
Some of the migrants were wearing T-shirts in the freezing weather and were given blankets before being transferred to a local church.
The arrivals included asylum seekers from Ecuador, Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Peru and Colombia, a volunteer told CNN.
Immigration activists said the incident was insensitive because of the freezing temperatures in the US capital as the country continued to feel the impact of a powerful winter storm this Christmas holiday.
The White House lashed out at Texas Governor Greg Abbott, one of at least three Republicans who have been sending migrants to cities led by Democrats to protest the administration's immigration policies, calling the latest transfer a "cruel, dangerous, and shameful stunt".
"Governor Abbott abandoned children on the side of the road in below freezing temperatures on Christmas Eve without coordinating with any Federal or local authorities," White House spokesperson Abdullah Hasan said in a statement to news outlets.
"As we have repeatedly said, we are willing to work with anyone -- Republican or Democrat alike -- on real solutions, like the comprehensive immigration reform and border security measures President Biden sent to Congress on his first day in office, but these political games accomplish nothing and only put lives in danger," Hasan continued.
Abbott previously accused President Joe Biden and his deputy Harris of "ignoring and denying the historic crisis at our southern border".
His office said in a release earlier this year that the Texas state government is "taking aggressive action to aid border communities", including busing thousands of migrants to Washington, D.C., New York City, Chicago and Philadelphia.
So far this year, US federal agents have made more than 1.82 million arrests at the country's southern border, according to figures released by the Customs and Border Protection.
