AUSTIN, Texas — A number of Texas lawmakers are urging President Joe Biden to act on a project that they claim would help transportation along the U.S.-Mexico Border.
U.S. Senators Ted Cruz and John Cornyn, as well as a bipartisan group from Texas' U.S. congressional delegation, are urging the president to proceed with a plan that would build four cross-border bridges in Laredo, Brownsville and Eagle Pass, claiming that they would both assist with travel and trade along the border and alleviate stress on the towns.
Cruz expressed his desires in a letter addressed to President Biden on Thursday, co-signed by Cornyn and Reps. Vicente Gonzales (D), Henry Cuellar (D) and Monica De La Cruz (R).
“As members of Congress who represent Texas border communities, we write to express our frustration over the delayed issuance of presidential permits for key bridge projects between the United States and Mexico. Bureaucratic barriers are preventing Texas communities from receiving the presidential permits required to construct four crucial bridges in Brownsville, Laredo, and Eagle Pass (“Texas-Mexico bridge projects”). These bridges are vital for facilitating trade, travel, and tourism, improving supply chain resiliency, and promoting economic growth throughout the United States, especially in the Texas border region that includes some of our state’s lowest-income areas. The Senate and the House of Representatives have separately advanced bipartisan legislation that would remove these unnecessary barriers for applicants. Instead of waiting for Congress to resolve differences and enact final legislation, we urge you to use your existing authority to remove these barriers now and to swiftly approve these economically-critical cross-border bridge projects."
Cruz further urged in the letter that the bridges would "swiftly approve these four critical Texas-Mexico bridge projects that will create jobs, improve supply chain resiliency and promote economic growth."