Donald Trump Backed by Texans to Secure Border

Significantly more Texans believe Donald Trump would provide a secure border between the U.S. and Mexico than President Joe Biden would, according to a new poll.

A Redfield & Wilton Strategy survey, conducted exclusively for Newsweek, found that 50 percent of eligible voters in Texas said they would trust the frontrunner in the GOP primary to secure the southern border, compared to 25 percent who trust his likely 2024 Democratic opponent.

Biden has seen record levels of illegal migration at the southern border during his time in office, with the latest poll another sign it may hinder the president's re-election hopes against the Republican, who is likely to yet again have hardline immigration policies as a key part of his presidential campaign.

Immigration has become even more of a hot issue as Texas Governor Greg Abbott continues to fight the Biden administration over the state's efforts to deter migrants. Abbott recently said he will not comply with a Supreme Court ruling to allow Border Patrol agents to remove razor wire erected in the Rio Grande area of Texas.

Abbott declared that Texas is under an "invasion" from migrants and invoked the state's constitutional right to defend and protect itself and handle the illegal border crossings as it sees fit, including installing more razor wire.

The Redfield & Wilton Strategy poll showed that two-thirds of voters in Texas agree that the Lone Star state is facing a migrant crisis at the moment, including 42 percent who "strongly agree" with the sentiment.

More than half (54 percent) also said they either agree or strongly agree with Abbott's assessment that Texas is under an "invasion" from migrants illegally crossing the southern border. Around the same amount of voters (55 percent) in Texas voters agree with Abbott's assertion that Texas has constitutional authority to protect and defend itself.

The poll also showed that 57 percent of Texans believe that the U.S. doesn't have control over the border between Texas and Mexico, with 57 percent of these people blaming the federal government for the lack of control, compared to 28 percent who say the government and the Texas state government share equal blame.

Trump's office and the White House have been contacted for comment via email.

At a recent speech in Las Vegas, Trump praised Abbott for the border security battle with the Biden administration, while agreeing with the governor that Texas is under an "invasion."

"When I'm president, instead of trying to send Texas a restraining order, I will send them reinforcements," Trump said. "Instead of fighting border states, I will use every resource tool and authority of the U.S. president to defend the United States of America from this horrible invasion that is taking place right now."

The Redfield & Wilton Strategies survey was conducted with 814 eligible voters in Texas on February 1-3.