Gov. Maura Healey is attempting to rip up the red carpet for migrants by sending members of her administration to the southern border in Texas. Their mission: to get the word out that shelter space is at peak capacity in Massachusetts.

Too little, too late, Governor.

Emergency Assistance Director Gen. Scott Rice said it is “essential” that the Healey administration spread the word “that our shelters are full so that families can plan accordingly to make sure they have a safe place to go.”

“This trip is an important opportunity to meet with families arriving in the U.S. and the organizations that work with them at the border to make sure they have accurate information about the lack of shelter space in Massachusetts,” Rice said in a statement.

One problem: Team Healey can insist all it wants to the folks in entry points like San Antonio, McAllen, Hidalgo and Brownsville that the Bay State is full up, but the reality is far different.

As long as Massachusetts has a right to shelter law on the books, they will come. As long as new shelter sites are “selected” around the state to house overflow crowds, they will come. As long as we issue drivers licenses regardless of immigration status, they will come. And as long as the Healey Administration pulls out the stops to get work authorizations for migrants, they will come.

You can throw out the welcome mat, but it doesn’t mean a thing if you leave the door wide open.

Though Healey signed off earlier this year on a nine-month limit for families with children and pregnant women to stay in state-run shelters, that’s still the offer of a place to stay for nine months, an appealing deal for those who want shelter ASAP. Even if the journey includes some nights bunking down in Logan Airport, the good people of the Healey Administration work tirelessly to find fresh shelter space.

Money is no object. The Healey administration spent $674 million on the emergency shelter system as of June 13, according to data released last week. Officials estimate costs could reach $932 million this fiscal year and $915 in fiscal year 2025. The state is buckling under the financial strain of housing and caring for the migrant influx, but it has yet to turn off the spigot and end the right to shelter law.

If the officials sent to Texas wanted to up the ante on futility, they could stop off in Washington and implore President Biden to close the border, not merely limit those allowed to cross. Fat chance, of course, which is why Healey’s going for a Hail Mary with the border trek.

Biden owns the border crisis, as it is he who undid former President Trump’s stricter immigration policies. Beleaguered leaders like Healey were left to pick up the pieces, yet they also acted as enablers, making cities and states more attractive to migrants with generous shelter policies and work authorizations.

It’s unlikely the visit to the border cities will do much of substance. Massachusetts is still attractive to migrants because of what we do, not what we say. And as long as that remains unchanged, they will come.

Editorial cartoon by Steve Kelley (Creators Syndicate)