IMPERIAL COUNTY, Calif. — While visiting a state-funded migrant center that provides services to asylum seekers near the Imperial County border with Mexico on Monday, Gov. Gavin Newsom criticized Republicans in Congress for politicizing immigration while failing to support comprehensive reforms.
Due to the lack of federal support, the governor said the state has spent nearly $1 billion working with nonprofits to provide immigrants released from federal detention with health screenings, temporary shelter and help connecting with sponsors over the last three years at nine facilities in Imperial, San Diego and Riverside counties.
“With the respect to the federal government, we’ve been doing their job for the last few years at scale,” Newsom said. “But we cannot continue to absorb that responsibility.”
