Texas Senator Ted Cruz said on Thursday that he will be bringing an elected Democrat to President Joe Biden's State of the Union address.
While appearing on Fox Business Network's Varney & Company, Cruz said Presidio County Sheriff Danny C. Dominguez would accompany him to Biden's speech on Thursday.
"He is the sheriff of Presidio County, Texas, that is right along the Rio Grande border, and Sheriff Dominguez is a Democrat," Cruz said. "He's an elected Democrat. He's been an elected Democrat for 28 years."
Cruz noted that Dominguez endorsed him in his 2024 reelection campaign and said, "The reason is a number of things, but right at the heart of it is, number one, standing with law enforcement and number two, securing the border."
"Today's Democrat party in Washington refuses to do either one of those," Cruz added.
Newsweek reached out to the Presidio County Sheriff's office via email for comment.
The context:
On Thursday evening, Biden will deliver his third State of the Union address, during which he will likely speak about issues the nation is currently facing, such as the U.S.-Mexico border, the economy, and the Russia-Ukraine and Israel-Hamas wars.
Republicans, including Cruz, have repeatedly criticized Biden's handling of the border and have called on the president to take executive action to curb the flow of illegal immigration into the United States.
In turn, Biden has encouraged Congress to pass a bipartisan border security deal and previously accused Republicans of being afraid of former President Donald Trump, who has expressed opposition to the legislation.
What we know:
Data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows a decline in illegal migrant encounters at the nation's southwest land borders in January when compared to December and November. However, the number in January (176,205 encounters) is still higher than in previous years.
In December, the data showed that there were 301,983 illegal migrant encounters at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Views:
During his appearance on Varney & Company, Cruz said that he does not expect Biden to say the names of Laken Riley and Jeremy Caceres. Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student from Georgia was found dead last month, prompting the arrest of Jose Ibarra, a 26-year-old illegal migrant from Venezuela.
Caceres, a 2-year-old from Maryland, was found dead in early February prompting the arrests of several suspects, including 25-year-old Nilson Trejo-Granados. Trejo-Granados is an illegal migrant from El Salvador, according to ICE.
Republican Representative Jim Banks previously called on Biden to speak about Riley during the State of the Union address.
What's next:
Biden recently secured several primary victories on Super Tuesday and the 2024 election is shaping up to be a rematch of the 2020 race between Biden and Trump after Republican candidate Nikki Haley suspended her campaign on Wednesday.
Trump has said he plans to do a live "play-by-play" of Biden's speech and attempt to correct "any and all inaccurate statements" from Biden.
Update 3/7/24, 9:53 a.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
Update 3/7/24, 10:38 a.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Matthew Impelli is a Newsweek staff writer based in New York. His focus is reporting social issues and crime. In ... Read more
