Donald Trump on Monday threatened to close the U.S.-Mexico border, "permanently if need be," due to the ongoing crisis of a migrant caravan assembled at the border in Tijuana, the New York Post is reporting.
For days now, a caravan of Central American migrants, having made their way through Mexico with designs on immigrating to the United States en masse, has been held up in Tijuana. They have found themselves unwelcome in the poor Mexican city, overflowing homeless shelters and finding themselves the subject of abuse at the hands of the city's residents and officials.
They are finding that they are equally unwelcome in the U.S. Border Patrol agents have fired tear gas at migrants trying to sneak through holes in the fence, and some have reportedly thrown "projectiles" at Border Patrol agents.
On Monday morning, Trump told Mexico to deal with the problem, saying on Twitter that something needs to be done about the migrants, whom Trump called "criminals," or else drastic action would be taken.
"Mexico should move the flag waving Migrants, many of whom are stone cold criminals, back to their countries. Do it by plane, do it by bus, do it anyway you want, but they are NOT coming into the U.S.A. We will close the Border permanently if need be. Congress, fund the WALL!"
