US southern border is becoming a 'serious problem,' Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton says

The White House said Tuesday that they are exploring options to shut down ports of entry at the U.S. southern border if the Mexican government doesn't help stem the tide of migrants.

This comes as the number of apprehensions by the border patrol have escalated in the beginning months of 2019, according to Homeland Security.

“We’re looking at all options when it comes to closing the different ports of entry,” White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said on "Trish Regan Primetime" that there is now a serious problem at the southern border.

“The numbers don't lie,” Paxton said. “When you're talking about almost 100,000 in a month and those are just the ones that we're catching, who knows what the real numbers are. I think even the democrats are having to acknowledge we have a serious issue on the border.”

U.S. Customs and Border Patrol recorded more than 100,000 apprehensions for the month of March, making it the highest monthly total in a decade.

The Wall Street Journal reports that there will be a record number of border crossings, both legal and illegal, by May of this year. On Monday, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen ordered “Emergency Surge Operations,” a deployment of 750 Customs and Border Protection personnel to the area most affected in the Southwest border.

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Paxton said Congress has to take a hard look at the current immigration laws which are being used by migrant countries for easier access into the U.S.

“It's easy to get in because they can claim asylum and suddenly, they are in the country and they get to wait for, potentially years before they actually have to go before a court,” he said. “Many of them disappear. I think they understand it's a pretty simple system to beat which is why congress needs to address our immigration laws.”