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DOJ is suing Texas for border buoys
Chris Cabrera, vice president of the National Border Patrol Council, tells Fox & Friends Weekend that most officers are “proud” of Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s efforts despite the legal action.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott took to Twitter on Sunday to taunt the Biden administration in a pair of tweets as he faces a Justice Department lawsuit over the state’s efforts to secure its international border with Mexico.
In a tweet, Abbott praised his border security for seizing more than 422 million lethal doses of fentanyl, which he claimed were able to cross the US-Mexico border due to the president’s poor performance.
“Texas has seized more than 422 million lethal doses of fentanyl since 2021. More than enough to kill all Americans,” the Texas governor wrote. “We also made 394,200 detentions of illegal immigrants and 31,300 criminal arrests. All because Biden is not doing his job.”
In another tweet, Abbott said Biden would “face the consequences” if the Justice Department took the state of Texas to court. The DOJ previously said in a letter to Abbott that it plans to charge him with using a floating buoy border barrier to stop illegal immigration into the state.
DOJ EXPLAINS TEXAS ON FLOATING BORDER BARRIER; ABBOTT SAYS ‘see you in court’
Texas Governor Greg Abbott speaks at a news conference at the Texas State Capitol on June 8, 2023 in Austin, Texas. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
Abbott, along with the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Texas National Guard, issued a statement Friday highlighting the efforts of Operation Lone Star, a coordinated effort by border personnel to “secure the border; stop the smuggling of drugs, weapons and people into Texas; and prevent, detect and interdict cross-border criminal behavior between entry points.”
“Since the launch of Operation Lone Star, the multi-agency effort has resulted in more than 394,200 detentions of illegal immigrants and more than 31,300 criminal arrests, with more than 29,100 felony charges. In the fight against fentanyl, Texas law enforcement seized more than 422 million lethal doses of fentanyl during this border mission,” the joint statement said.
The statement also highlighted the state’s efforts to direct migrants crossing the southern border to Democratic cities across the country, including Washington, D.C., New York City, Chicago, Philadelphia, Denver and Los Angeles.
In total, more than 27,000 migrants have been sent to those cities.
“Operation Lone Star continues to fill in the dangerous gaps created by the Biden administration’s refusal to secure the border. Every individual apprehended or arrested and every ounce of drug seized would otherwise have found its way into communities across Texas and the country because of President Joe Biden’s open-border policies,” the statement added.
OVERWHELMING MAJORITY OF AMERICANS SAY BORDER IS IN CRISIS OR ‘MAJOR PROBLEM’: POLL
Texas is also staring into a legal battle with the Biden administration over the use of border barriers, which officials say have created a dangerous path for would-be migrants. Some border officials have recalled migrants who suffered cuts and lacerations when they crawled through barbed wire fences.
Migrants walk past a series of buoys placed on the water along the Rio Grande border with Mexico in Eagle Pass, Texas, on July 16, 2023. (SUZANNE CORDEIRO/AFP via Getty Images)
A spokesman for the Department of Justice’s Department of Environment and Natural Resources confirmed that the DOJ “has sent a letter to the Governor of Texas and the Attorney General notifying us of our intent to pursue legal action in connection with the unlawful construction of a floating barrier in the Rio Grande River pursuant to Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act, 33 U.S.C. § 403.”
The letter sets a July 24 deadline for a response from Abbott.
Abbott initially responded to the letter in a series of tweets on Friday, once again blaming President Biden for handling the border crisis and unashamedly saying that Texas was “acting to address this crisis.”
“Texas has sovereign authority to defend our border, under the United States Constitution and the Constitution of Texas,” he wrote. “We have sent the Biden administration numerous letters describing our authority, including the letter I personally delivered to President Biden earlier this year.”
ABBOTT MOVES FORWARD WITH FLOATING BORDER BARRIER AT RIO GRANDE DESPITE LIBERAL WEATHER
“Texas is doing everything it can to address this crisis,” continued Governor Abbott. “We will continue to use every strategy to protect Texans and Americans – and the migrants who risk their lives. We’ll see you in court, Mr. President.”
On Sunday, Abbott doubled down, adding, “Under Biden’s administration, the UN has declared the U.S.-Mexico border the deadliest border crossing in the world. Biden must now face the consequences.”
The White House responded Friday, saying Abbott’s actions endanger the lives of migrants and agents, and accused him of undermining President Biden’s border plan.
Gov. Greg Abbott and Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steve McCraw joined the bill’s authors, sponsors, legislators and law enforcement in signing bills designed to improve border security along the southern border. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
“President Biden’s plan to manage the border through deterrence, enforcement and diplomacy after the title 42 public health order is lifted is working,” Assistant Press Secretary Abdullah Hasan said in a statement.
Hasan also pointed to a drop in border encounters in June to levels not seen since February 2021.
“Illegal border crossings have fallen to the lowest level in more than two years,” he said. “Governor Abbott’s dangerous and unlawful actions undermine our effective border enforcement plan and make it difficult for CBP to do their job of securing the border. The governor’s actions are brutal and endanger both migrants and border agents.”
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“The Justice Department has made it clear that it is prepared to take the governor to court if he does not immediately remove the illegal structures in the Rio Grande,” he said.
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has also criticized Abbott for the new security measures.
Fox News’ Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
