“We really shouldn’t treat other cities and municipalities the way we’re seeing now,” he added.
Adams’ remarks come days after GOP Govs. Greg Abbott of Texas and Ron DeSantis of Florida angered Democrats by sending Texas immigrants to Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts and outside Vice President Kamala Harris’ residence in Washington, DC. Although the governors’ moves have been slammed by critics as political stunts, they underscore the growing crisis on the southern border and the need for leaders in Washington and elsewhere to work together to address the issue.
Abbott’s office estimated last week that more than 2,500 migrants have been bussed from Texas to New York.
For his part, Adams said Abbott and De Sandys were demonstrating an “erosion of basic human rights” by “treating people in an inhumane manner”. He went on to describe some of the conditions immigrants found themselves in when they arrived in New York from border states.
“In some cases, we had people who were Covid-positive on buses with people who were dehydrated — they didn’t have proper food,” he said. “Some were even tagged, like you would tag an animal.”
Meanwhile, Republican Sen. Mike Rounds of South Dakota defended Abbott and DeSantis in a separate interview Sunday on “State of the Union,” arguing that the governors are “doing everything they can to try to send a message to the rest of nation regarding the plight of those individuals who come from south of the border.”
“You’re talking about 3.4 million people, just since the beginning of this Biden administration, coming across the border. And they’re coming into southern states,” Rounds said. “What’s a governor to do? They’re trying to send a message to the rest of the country that this is not acceptable and that their states cannot handle this kind of influx.”
Adams on Sunday said it was “really unfortunate” that a country known for its humanitarian actions would behave this way. “This is a wound for our whole country,” he said.
The mayor said he spoke with leaders in D.C. to discuss immigration reform, pushing the importance of allowing new arrivals to be able to work in the US.
“I don’t think it’s really reasonable to allow people to be here for months without being able to look for work, particularly at a time when we’re looking for employees in various areas of our city,” he said.
Adams also said he plans to change some policies in the city’s Right to Housing Act to better address the situation.
“I’m sure that 40 years ago, when this law came into force, no one thought that we would receive 11,000 immigrants or asylum seekers,” he said.
Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, while criticizing Republican governors for their actions, insisted Sunday that the immigration system must be addressed, even if it is a difficult issue for Democrats as midterm elections approach.
The Illinois Democrat acknowledged on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that “there is a political risk” for Democrats in the immigration debate, but said it is not an impossible issue to resolve.
“All these things can be done. Are they controversial? You bet. Some of them are very controversial, but we know we have to do it,” he said.
This story has been updated with additional reaction.
CNN’s Morgan Rimmer contributed to this report.
