Gov. Rick Perry Testifies on Child Immigration Crisis

MCALLEN, Texas (AP) — Gov. Rick Perry has testified at a U.S. House Homeland Security Committee hearing in South Texas that in addition to the humanitarian crisis created by a flood of unaccompanied child immigrants, there is a crisis involving border security.

More than 52,000 unaccompanied children have been apprehended since October after entering the United States illegally. Three-fourths of them are from Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador and say they're fleeing pervasive gang violence and crushing poverty.

Perry on Thursday in McAllen criticized President Barack Obama's immigration policies that he says contributed to the problem. He says anything but deporting the children quickly will only encourage more to undertake the dangerous journey.

Perry has authorized $1.3 million per week in additional funding for the Texas Department of Public Safety to bolster border security.