Abbott appoints first ever Texas border czar in face of border crisis

Gov. Greg Abbott, R-Texas, appointed Texas’ first ever border czar Monday. The position is tasked with coordinating with state and federal agencies to manage the Texas-Mexico border.

Gov. Abbott selected Mike Banks, a longtime U.S. Border Patrol agent who had recently retired, to fill the role. He will be based about five miles north of the border and will report directly to Abbott.

“As an award-winning Border Patrol Agent, with decades of federal law enforcement and border security experience, Mike is the perfect choice to oversee Texas’ fight against the surge of illegal immigration, lethal drugs, and deadly weapons flowing into our state and nation,” Abbott said in a statement. “I have no doubt that Mike’s strong record of leadership and wealth of experience will provide Texans—and Americans—the level of border security expertise they deserve from a proper Border Czar.”

According to Abbott, Banks’ responsibility as the Texas border czar includes traveling along the border, assisting on crackdown operations and coordinating with others to build the state’s wall. Banks has said he will work to make Texas “the least desirable place” to cross the border, adding that law enforcement near the border must be “more aggressive.”

“Protecting our nation’s border is something I have dedicated the last 23 years of my life to, and I am very passionate about it,” Banks said in a statement. “I look forward to strengthening our relationships with law enforcement partners and the community, leveraging all that we can to further protect our great state of Texas and the United States.”

Abbott’s Texas border czar announcement comes as border officials have been making moves to combat a record border crisis. In recent months, the U.S. Border Patrol opened a 153,000-square-foot migrant facility and shut down a highway checkpoint in El Paso.

The Austin American-Statesman contributed to this report.