Border Dispute

Perry Bills Gov’t $350M

His estimate of the cost of illegal immigration in Texas.

Does Rick Perry think this money will come out of the spending cuts? The Texas governor sent a bill to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for $350 million—his estimate of what illegal immigration has cost his state. Perry says the $350 million is the cost of detaining illegal immigrants in state prisons and county jails because the U.S.-Mexico border hasn’t been secured well enough. The letter to Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano is dated Aug. 10, three days before Perry formally announced his run for the presidency. Perry has faced criticism from fellow conservatives for being too lenient on illegal immigration since he differs from fellow GOP candidates for not supporting a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.