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The battle between federal and state authorities in Texas over illegal immigration has revolved around a disagreement over razor wire, but it has also turned into a standoff over who controls part of the Texas-Mexico border. It’s escalating.
The situation has become a broader political and cultural issue, with other states also sending National Guard troops and convoys of trucks to the small Texas town of Eagle Pass.
The issue: Texas continues to install razor wire along 49 miles of Eagle Pass riverbank, despite opposition from the Biden administration and a January U.S. Supreme Court ruling allowing federal authorities to cut the wire. After the ruling, the White House said razor wire made it unsafe for federal Border Patrol agents to carry out missions such as assisting migrants.
Even after the high court’s ruling, Texas continues to prohibit U.S. Border Patrol agents from entering Shelby Park, a municipal park near the Rio Grande that has seen an influx of thousands of migrants in recent years. The state continues to install additional razor wire.
Meanwhile, migrants continue to make dangerous crossings, although crossings in the park itself have decreased since December. Last summer, USA TODAY reported that razor wire was causing serious injuries, including bruises, broken ankles, and deep cuts that needed to be closed with medical staples, sometimes even to children.
Here’s what you need to know about the controversial battle over how to secure the border and its often tragic outcome.
Texas governor resists federal efforts near border
The Texas National Guard is installing razor wire at the southern border as part of Gov. Greg Abbott’s efforts to stop immigrants from entering the United States, despite the ruling.
“This is not over. Razor wire in Texas is an effective deterrent to the illegal crossings that Mr. mentioned in.
Mr. Abbott has the support of nearly all Republican governors. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is the latest to send National Guard troops to help Texas. DeSantis said the state will soon deploy up to 1,000 National Guard troops.
“The goal is to help the state of Texas strengthen this border, strengthen the barricades, add barriers, add the necessary wires so that we can stop this invasion once and for all.” DeSantis said Thursday. States must unite. ”
Eagle Pass Anxiety:As fighting erupts between Texas and the U.S., small border cities prepare for the next conflict
What are the tensions between the U.S. Border Patrol and the state of Texas?
The conflict over border control between Texas and Mexico boils down to a conflict between states ruled by Republican governors and the federal government, with a Democrat in the White House. This would break up the long-standing partnership between state law enforcement and border patrol authorities.
Immigration enforcement is typically the responsibility of the federal government.
Mr. Abbott closed Shelby Park to the public in January, which city officials said was unexpected, and placed the park under state control.
The Border Patrol previously used the park as a processing area for migrants crossing the border via the Rio Grande. The seizure also closed the park to federal personnel, despite requests from the federal government to do so.
No migrants were seen at the park Friday while the Texas National Guard installed additional razor wire.
The Secretary of Homeland Security said, “It is unconscionable for public servants to knowingly refuse to communicate, coordinate, or cooperate with other public servants in the national interest, or to do so in the hope of causing disruption to others.” ”. Alejandro Mayorkas told The Associated Press.
Conflict raises legal and constitutional issues
After Mr. Abbott assumed control of the park, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 to allow federal officials to remove the razor wire, a major victory for the Biden administration.
The administration argues in court documents that the wires prevent Border Patrol agents from accessing migrants crossing the river and that federal immigration law takes precedence over Texas’ own efforts to slow the flow of migrants. Ta.
“Texas’ political stunts, such as installing razor wire near the border, make it harder and more dangerous for front-line workers to do their jobs,” White House press secretary Angelo Fernandez Hernandez said in a statement. There is only one.”
“Inflection Point”:Gov. Ron DeSantis sends Florida National Guard to Texas
But Abbott said after the ruling that states have a right to protect their borders and criticized President Joe Biden’s lax enforcement of immigration laws.
“I will continue to uphold Texas’ constitutional authority to secure our borders and prevent the Biden administration from destroying our assets,” Abbott said.
The next steps of the courts and the U.S. Department of Justice are unclear, but Biden has vowed to take immediate action to “seal” the border with Mexico if Congress approves the proposal being negotiated in the Senate, prompting lawmakers to urged its approval. It’s a bipartisan bill “if we’re serious about the border crisis.”
Confrontation draws attention to the human cost of border policies
A Mexican woman and her two children died last month while trying to cross the Rio Grande near Shelby Park. Mexican authorities alerted the U.S. Border Patrol that the three migrants drowned earlier, but that two others, a mother and her son, were lost on the U.S. side of the river. Border Patrol agents requested access to the area to find the two men, but were denied. Officials in Texas said officials did not see the two in distress, but Mexican authorities eventually rescued the mother and child, who had symptoms of hypothermia.
The deaths of three people and numerous documented injuries while crossing the razor wire have drawn attention to the human toll faced by migrants crossing the border. In July, USA TODAY spoke with a family whose 5-year-old son suffered a two-inch cut on his calf that had to be stapled shut after getting caught by a razor’s wife. The family was processed by Border Patrol agents and released to await a court date.
Alicia Garcia, an Eagle Pass resident who told The Associated Press that she usually avoids Shelby Park, said she saw floating buoys in addition to razor wire, as many asylum seekers are being released by U.S. authorities. questioned the value of Abbott’s deterrence efforts, including the barriers to protection. Until the trial.
“What happened to the show?” Garcia said. “If they’re still crossing, it’s better to dismantle everything.”
Contributors: Eduardo Cuevas, Joey Garrison, Julia Gomez, Rick Jervis, USA TODAY; Associated Press
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