“If Trump becomes president again, it will end in chaos”: The US election will be decided at the Mexican border

Illegal migration is the main topic on ‘Super Tuesday’

Illegal migration also determines ‘Super Tuesday’ with primaries in 15 American states. The Republicans and their candidate Donald Trump (77) speak of a ‘colossal crisis’ at the border. President Joe Biden (81) and the Democrats weigh in: “We must humanize migration.”

The epicenter of the debate is the region around the Rio Grande border town of Eagle Pass. People mainly speak Spanish here. On the Mexican side of the river is Piedras Negras, a city with many dental practices where Americans can have their teeth straightened cheaply.

A bridge connects the places. Anyone who has papers can travel between both countries. Until recently, those who weren’t wading the river in a shallow spot were in Eagle Pass’ Shelby Park.

Border patrols are also of little use

At the end of January, Texas Governor Gregg Abbott (66) sent the National Guard to Eagle Pass and closed the park. Now there are armored vehicles here. Soldiers patrol. There is barbed wire in the river. Trump recently visited the fort and praised the governor for allowing no one to pass through.

Now people just swim across the Rio Grande north of Eagle Pass, around Normandy. Here, three-year-old Samuel frolics around the picnic area with a stray dog. He smiles, even though he has barely slept. His father Alex (25) carried him across the river on his shoulders, while his mother Estefania (28) took over the luggage.

They had been traveling from Ecuador to the US for more than a month, said Estefania, a psychologist. Her husband is a teacher. They undertook the arduous journey “because it is dangerous in Ecuador”.

Now they hope for asylum. Just like the people next to them: from Colombia and Honduras, Haiti and Venezuela. They board a bus that takes them to a transit camp.

Once they leave, the pickups bring 30 more people. Border guards line them up in three rows. Men, women, families. No one defends themselves, the mood is peaceful. They have reached their destination: “In America”.

Americans are worried about the border

The Rio Grande meanders like a green snake through arid land. The rapids make it difficult to swim through. Sugar cane grows on the American coast, behind which there are barbed wire fences. Shoes and clothes that migrants have thrown away lie on the ground. Signs with the inscription “Siga el Camino” – follow the path – point to the street where border guards are waiting.

Many Americans are concerned about the border. Because of drugs coming into the country and men being dangerous. This is evident from surveys and statements from people living at the border.

Jimmy Hobbs (77) was born on the Rio Grande. The ranch that has been in his family for generations is located on the river. There is a ‘Trump 2024’ sign in the garden. He grows onions and watermelons. “Migrants come into my country every day,” said Hobbs, wearing a baseball cap to shield his face from the sun.

He can’t do much more than ‘clean up their damn garbage’. Biden is responsible for ‘the mess’. “He lets everyone in so they can vote for his party.” He is certain: “If Trump is president again, the chaos will end.”

Democrats and Republicans are competing for votes

Juanita Martinez, 67, enters Democratic office in Eagle Pass. The local party chairman wears jeans and a denim shirt and walks her dog Oliver on a leash. She forgot the bowl, says “sorry Obama,” picks up a plate with the ex-president’s face on it from the wall, pours water into it and puts it in front of Oliver.

She has politics in her blood. “I was born in Eagle Pass, this is where I live and fight.” Your opponent is the governor of Texas. “Abbott is using Eagle Pass for political propaganda by talking about invasion. He could only build his fortress because we have a weak city government.”

Eagle Pass pays the bill. Reporters from all over the world are here “to find an invasion that doesn’t exist.” Plus soldiers and police officers. Prices have exploded. A hotel room that once cost $100 now costs $300.

The Democrat knows that the Republicans’ calculations work. “We are losing votes.” Many young Hispanic men would like Trump. Martínez shakes his head. “Hispanics follow a man who is racist and crazy.”

The Republican headquarters are located just outside the center. Sandy Sassano, 60, sits in front of a poster showing a grim Donald Trump with the caption “Never Surrender.” “The tide has turned in our favor in Eagle Pass,” says the local party chairman. The number of Republican voters has increased tenfold this year. “Because of what’s happening at the border,” Sassano is sure. “Many who voted for Biden are now switching to Trump.”

Because he says what many people think. “The migrants receive free accommodation, food and medical care. And who pays for that? We!” She wants to send back to Mexico everyone who entered the country illegally. “You have to apply for asylum in the first country you enter – and that is not the US.”

Is the migration crisis not that bad?

Jerry Fischer (40) has lived on the Border River for twenty years. She had moved here from Idaho to work at the military base. Horses graze in the garden and her ten-year-old daughter plays next to them. It is no more dangerous here than in other border towns. She cut down the sugar cane so that immigrants could not hide. She locks the doors. Her neighbors would watch her. “Everyone who lives on the river has a gun. He will use them if anyone enters his property.”

Mayra Saldivar (29) has only been living on the Rio Grande for a week. She moved here with her husband and her nine-year-old daughter. She found a new job in a café and the family was able to buy a house. “What the media reports about the border is exaggerated,” she says. “We’ll set up a few cameras, that’s enough.”