Texas Governor Greg Abbott faced a severe backlash for a tone deaf Christmas Day tweet after dumping dozens of migrants outside of Kamala Harris’s residence in dangerously cold temperatures.
“May the hopeful promise of our Savior’s birth bring comfort & joy to you & your family. Merry Christmas, Texas!” Mr Abbott posted along with a bible verse on Christmas morning.
Hours earlier, three busloads of migrants were dropped off in front of the vice president’s Washington DC home late on Christmas Eve as temperatures plunged to 18F (-8C).
The group were originally due to travel from Texas to New York but was diverted due to the severe bomb cyclone which swept through the US.
The migrants, some dressed in just t-shirts, were met by aid groups who transferred them to local churches and provided warm clothing and meals.
Mr Abbott’s biblical post drew widespread condemnation on social media as being antithetical to the spirit of Christmas.
“This you, King Herod?” wrote Tracy Delaney on Twitter, referring to the 1st Century BC ruler of Judaea who according to scriptures ordered the “Massacre of the Innocents”.
“This is definitely what Jesus would do,” journalist Marisa Kabasa tweeted.
Academic Don Moynihan wrote: “Merry Christmas to the dude that would have sent the Holy Family to DC.”
Journalist Josh Marshall, who founded the Talking Points Memo news site, tweeted: “The saviour rejoices that you dumped those scared families on the sidewalk in freezing cold temps in DC with nowhere to go.”
“You debase the holiday and your faith. You should beg those families for forgiveness, then face legal consequences for your behaviour,” the Changing Hands Bookstore’s Twitter account posted.
“Where would you have shipped Jesus as a political stunt?” Craig Newman wrote.
Mr Abbott has not yet commented on the stunt, and did not immediately reply to an inquiry from The Independent.
A White House spokesman Abdullah Hasan said it was a “cruel, dangerous, and shameful stunt” in a statement on Monday.
“As we have repeatedly said, we are willing to work with anyone — Republican or Democrat alike — on real solutions, like the comprehensive immigration restructuring 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,” Mr Hasan told The Washington Post.
Mr Abbott had previously ordered several busloads of migrants be taken to Ms Harris’s home in September, one of three Republican governors to fly or bus migrants to norther Democratic-led states.
