Asylum seekers bused away by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott arrive in Philadelphia

Nov. 16 (UPI) -- A bus carrying a group of asylum seekers arrived in Philadelphia on Wednesday morning from Texas.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced the transfer of migrants on Twitter, saying Texas "will continue doing more than any other state in history to secure our border, including adding more sanctuary cities as drop-off locations for our busing strategy."

Abbott blamed the Biden administration, saying Texas was "overwhelmed by the historic influx of migrants" and announced that he was invoking the so-called "invasion clause."

"I invoked the invasion clause of the U.S. and Texas Constitutions to fully authorize Texas to take unprecedented measures to defend our state against an invasion. I'm using that constitutional authority, & other authorization and executive orders to keep our state and country safe," Abbott tweeted on Wednesday.

Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney denounced Abbott's rhetoric.

"It's truly disgusting to hear today that Governor Abbott and his Administration continue to implement their purposefully cruel policy using immigrant families-including women and children-as pawns to shamelessly push this warped political agenda," Kenney wrote in a statement.

About half of the new arrivals were part of a family unit while the rest were traveling as individuals. Only three of the approximately 30 asylum seekers listed Philadelphia as their final destination.

Philadelphia council member Helen Gym was seen greeting asylum seekers and community organizations were on hand to help the new arrivals who were given blankets and drinks by humanitarian organizations.

The asylum seekers will be taken to a shelter in Hunting Park.