Take these illegals and shove ‘em.

That seemed to be the message being sent yesterday by Texas Governor Greg Abbott to Joe Biden and his open-borders administration, when Abbott declared during a press conference that illegal immigrants released into his state will be packed up and shipped off to the nation’s capital instead, either via bus or charter flight.

“To help local officials whose communities are being overwhelmed by hordes of illegal immigrants who are being dropped off by the Biden administration,” said Abbott, “Texas is providing charter buses to send these illegal immigrants to Washington, D.C. We are sending them to the United States Capitol, where the Biden administration will be able to more immediately address the needs of the people that they are allowing to come across our border.”

At first glance, we thought, Good for Texas, and good for Governor Abbott. But, as the Texas Tribune subsequently noted, Abbott’s office clarified that the program is completely voluntary and only applicable to those who’d already been processed and released by the Department of Homeland Security.

“It’s a gimmick,” said State Representative Matt Schaefer, a self-described “liberty-loving conservative.”

Given the muscular headline from yesterday’s presser, we see Schaefer’s point. Still, the message Abbott is sending is better than a sternly worded memo, and far better than a mere shrug of the shoulders. Texas Department of Public Safety Lieutenant Chris Olivarez took up Abbott’s defense:

The governor was very clear yesterday when he made that announcement, and that’s just an example of strong leadership by not only standing up for Texans in law enforcement, but also taking a stance against the federal government by sending a clear message that the state of Texas has zero tolerance, and we are no longer going to tolerate the mass releasing of illegal immigrants into border communities because it puts a strain on resources. … Behind that announcement is to relieve some of the strain on … the local border community, but especially for our federal partners — U.S. Border Patrol because they are so overwhelmed right now and the processing facilities are at capacity. That’s why you’re seeing mass releasing of illegal immigrants into border communities.

Contrast this sensible message with that of the Texas Tribune and the rest of the state’s open-borders media, which called Abbott’s announcement “a stunning plan that sent a shockwave through the [illegal] immigration rights community.”

We wonder: What “rights” are illegal immigrants entitled to upon breaking into our country, aside from being treated humanely?

Yesterday, our Nate Jackson warned that the border situation is about to get even worse. Abbott clearly agrees. In addition to his DC tourism transports, he also promised boat blockades and enhanced vehicle inspections at points of entry. Still, his state’s border checkpoints are being overwhelmed, and conditions are only going to get worse with the Biden administration’s recent recission of Title 42, a Trump-era public health order that granted the Border Patrol power to immediately expel illegal immigrants under the auspices of fighting the spread of COVID-19.

In light of all this, who in his right mind can blame the governor?

Updated to include info about additional border enforcement measures from the Texas governor.