WASHINGTON – On Wednesday, during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on the Biden Border Crisis, Congressman Lance Gooden (R-Texas) questioned El Paso County Judge Ricardo Samaniego regarding his open border sympathies and his past comments deriding Republicans as “racist.” 
 
Rep. Lance Gooden said, “The United States has been invaded by millions of migrants this year, and the casualties are the hundreds of thousands of Americans who have died from fentanyl poisoning. Republicans are not ‘racist’ for our desire to protect American citizens and ensure our border is secure and migrants are properly vetted. Judge Samaniego’s rhetoric is insulting and hypocritical considering he has begged Governor Abbott for help while denouncing Republican action to stem the flow of migrants.”   
 
During his exchange, Congressman Gooden also highlighted his concerns with Catholic Charities and other religious nonprofits that are incentivizing migrants to make the journey to the United States. He continued, “migrants are absolutely invading this country… I believe this Catholic Charities ruse has encouraged and facilitated child trafficking and a lot of the violence we’ve seen. Our border is absolutely open.”