WASHINGTON, D.C. (Nexstar) — Texas may be reopening for business, but the state’s southern border with Mexico is still closed to pedestrians to protect public health.
The only people crossing the border are truck drivers delivering goods.
Texas Democratic Congressman Henry Cuellar wants to keep the traffic flowing across the border to help the economy, but he says Customs and Border Patrol officers should check temperatures and make sure the drivers don’t show signs of illness.
“We still have 6,000 truckers that cross the border from Mexico into the United States and going back… we need food, we need auto supplies and all that, but are we testing those drivers?” says Cuellar.
He’s asking the White House to require every individual that enters the country take a coronavirus test before they are let in — which he says, unfortunately, could mean increased wait times at the ports of entry.
“We got to make sure that we keep the essential trade going, but at the same time that we also test those people crossing the borders.”
Texas Republican Senator John Cornyn agrees Mexico will have an important impact on the U.S. efforts to slow the spread of the coronavirus. But he says because U.S. manufacturers rely on Mexico for a lot of their supplies — one more hurdle to the flow of goods could be harmful to international relationships and businesses.
“I am sure they don’t have the infrastructure to deal with the virus like we do… We are connected to a common border and a common economy,” says Cornyn.
Acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf says the border will remain closed to non-essential travel through the end of May.
