Thirty-one young masked migrant adults got off a white bus at about 7am. at the Manhattan Port Authority Bus Terminal amid the ongoing public spat between Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Republican Mayor Eric Adams’ administration over the bus-crossing border. City Hall’s head of immigration affairs, Manuel Castro, said Sunday that the latest “busload of asylum seekers coming from Texas” was part of a shameful “political ploy.” “We have serious issues with the way Governor Abbott is treating asylum seekers, especially because it’s supposed to be a voluntary bus ride, and it appears it’s not,” Castro told reporters at the Manhattan facility. The commissioner was apparently referring to reports of sick and malnourished immigrants, as well as those who were forced to come directly to New York without stopping despite asking to get off the bus in Tennessee. Another busload of border crossings from Texas arrived in the Big Apple on Sunday morning.GNMiller/NYPost “We question what Governor Abbott is doing. This is a political ploy,” Castro said. “We’re going to talk to people, find out more,” he said. “On the previous buses, people were sick, hungry, had been through a lot. … There have been a lot of issues along the way here. As you may have heard, a person or several people wanted to get off earlier, but the bus [driver] he refused.” The influx of immigrants — many of whom are reportedly seeking asylum in the U.S. — in the five boroughs has left city officials scrambling to provide shelter to the homeless newcomers, which is required by law. But former New York Gov. David Paterson, a Democrat, said he was impressed by Abbott’s political maneuvering, explaining that she put Adams in a bind. “Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has come up with … one of the most brilliant political strategies I’ve heard in a long time,” Patterson said during an appearance on WABC 770’s “Cats Roundtable” that aired Sunday. Many of the migrants will eventually head to final destinations in New Jersey, North Carolina, Chicago and Kentucky, with volunteers helping to get them there.GNMiller/NYPost “I’m a Democrat. And there are a lot of things I don’t like about what he does. However, sometimes you have to leave your cap to your opponent. “It really paid dividends for him politically,” Patterson said of Abbott. “Plus, it’s put New York City Mayor Eric Adams in a position where he can’t say he won’t take in immigrants. “That would be contrary to the policy that most Democrats have on immigration. And if [Adams] sends immigrants back to Texas, … goes against his own effort to get the federal government to help pay for them being here.” A City Hall spokesman said the migrants brought in on Sunday’s buses came from Venezuela and Colombia. The city joined the volunteers by providing them with food, water and clothing, as well as legal and medical assistance, the spokesman said. The influx of immigrants to the five boroughs has left city officials scrambling to provide shelter for the homeless newcomers.GNMiller/NYPost Many of the migrants will eventually head to final destinations in New Jersey, North Carolina, Chicago and Kentucky, with volunteers helping to get them there, the spokesman said. Abbott’s press office did not respond to a request for comment. Patterson said while the situation puts Adams in a bind, he doesn’t think it has hurt him politically. “I don’t think Adams is hurt at all in this process,” the former governor told host John Catsimatidis. “But I think nationally, it’s a terrific way to focus people on the whole immigration process.”
