Tensions between Texas and the Biden administration over the border took a turn for the worse on Thursday, January 11. Why? Because the Texas National Guard seized control of Shelby Park in Eagle Pass, Texas while denying entry to federal authorities.
The seizure came after Governor Greg Abbott signed an emergency order granting the state guard “full control” of the park over the objections of local officials.
According to two U.S. officials, the Texas National Guard is now restricting federal U.S. Border Patrol from entering the park, which runs along the bank of the Rio Grande. “They are denying entry to Border Patrol agents to conduct our duties,” an official said, questioning “what authority [Texas officials] have over the federal government.”
In recent times, Eagle Pass has become a focal point of Abbott’s crackdown on illegal border crossings through Texas. Last year, the state government deployed controversial river barriers down a 1,000-foot stretch of the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass.
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On Thursday, the Justice Department, in a complaint filed to the Supreme Court, challenged the legality of the barriers. It asked the court to intervene against “an escalation of the State’s measures to block Border Patrol’s ability to patrol or even to surveil the border and be in a position to respond to emergencies.”
The Biden administration sued Texas earlier in the month over recent legislation signed by Abbott. The law grants local law enforcement the authority to arrest migrants and allows judges to order deportations.
The administration says the law goes against constitutional mandates granting the federal government authority over border enforcement. In a Facebook video, Eagle Pass Mayor Ronaldo Salinas revealed how he got a call on Thursday from Texas DPS.
POLL—Should the U.S. Government Create a Path to Citizenship for Undocumented Immigrants?
And how it informed him that they were taking full control of Shelby Park thanks to an order from Abbott. The mayor captured an already erected blockade at one of the entrances to the area in a video.
“That is not a decision that we agreed to. This is not something that we wanted. This is not something that we asked for as a city,” Salinas confessed. “Our legal team is looking into what’s going on, just to make sure that everything is being done in a legal manner.”
Renae Eze, a spokesperson for Abbott, said that the state “will continue to deploy Texas National Guard soldiers, DPS troopers, and more barriers, utilizing every tool and strategy to respond to President Biden’s ongoing border crisis.”
In the meantime, Abbott continues to take a lot of heat. On Thursday, he was criticized for his response when asked where the line was for him in terms of border enforcement mechanisms.
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His reply confirmed that Texas is not shooting migrants crossing the border. But only because “the Biden administration would charge us with murder.” Shooting unarmed migrants is illegal. And the governor’s comments did not reflect well on the way Texas state officials regard asylum seekers.
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