Sen. Marsha Blackburn's (R-Tenn.) plan would give states the authority to secure the U.S.-Mexico border without requiring federal approval from President Joe Biden's administration, Breitbart・News reported exclusively.
Blackburn's Container Act would give border states the power to erect temporary structures, including razor wire, shipping containers and other barriers, along the southern border without first getting federal approval. become.
The bill invokes the Constitution's so-called “invasion clause,” giving states the power to defend themselves against invasion. But under current law, states must obtain federal approval before building on federal land.
“Since President Biden took office, more than 8.5 million people have been insecure at our southern border, and every state has become a border state,” Blackburn told Breitbart News.
The Container Act also allows border states to store such temporary structures on federal property for up to one year, with extensions available for 90 days, with approval from the Departments of the Interior and Agriculture.
Built on federal land by Republican Gov. Doug Ducey, built on shipping containers and topped with bellows wire, along the U.S.-Mexico border in the Coronado National Forest near Hereford, Arizona, Dec. 20, 2022 The border wall that was erected sets in the setting sun. (Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images)
Shipping containers line the U.S.-Mexico border at Coronado National Monument in Cochise County, Arizona, U.S. on Sunday, Dec. 11, 2022. (Rebecca Noble/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Shipping containers line the U.S.-Mexico border at Coronado National Monument in Cochise County, Arizona, USA, on Saturday, December 10, 2022. (Rebecca Noble/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“Meanwhile, his government is only exacerbating the problem by trying to end the use of shipping containers, razor wire and other means of securing our borders,” Blackburn continued. “With Joe Biden refusing to do so, it is clear that Congress must act to give border states clear authority to protect their communities and the sovereignty of the United States.”
In fact, just recently, the Biden administration's Department of Justice (DOJ) asked the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene and force Texas officials to remove razor wire that Texas installed along its southern border to help reduce illegal immigration. I requested him to do so.
Similarly, in December 2022, Biden's Justice Department forced the state of Arizona to remove shipping containers placed along its border to reduce illegal immigration. The containers were able to close a huge hole in the border wall.
Despite record numbers of illegal immigrants, much of the country's nearly 3,000-mile-long border remains open and free of barriers.
John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Please email jbinder@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter here.
