Midland Mayor Patrick Payton Tours Migrant Camp Says Kids Are ‘Well Taken Care Of’

Midland Mayor Patrick Payton toured the migrant camp in Midland yesterday (March 30, 2021) and says the kids are being "well taken care of."

According to the Midland Reporter-Telegram, the mayor said the children had access to case workers and were getting the schooling they needed.

“It’s a great camp for someone who came from the third world to find themselves in for food, exercise, discipline and education,” said Payton. “The people here are doing the best they can with what they’ve been handed from the federal government. It’s very impressive but at the same time I’m very sad and angry for what the feds have made happen here,” he said.

Payton said that the report that there were no case workers or Spanish speaking staff at the camp was false and that the children had multiple case workers available to them and they are being tutored by Spanish speaking staff.

The only concern that Payton had was that the facility has the appearance of being more of a long term operation which is opposite of what the government has told local authorities.

The agency using the facility said they would only be using it for a few weeks, but Cotton Logistics has leased the man camp out to the agency for 90 days with extensions available.

“It eased my mind that the kids are being taken care of and that the people who are paid to do the job are doing the job they’re supposed to be doing,” Payton said. “But it doesn’t ease my mind at all about what’s happening at the border, which is going to cause this to continue.”

Payton will tour the facility again today (March 31,2021) with County Judge Terry Johnson and Senator John Cornyn.