The Biden administration maintains that the Texas border island used by Mexican drug cartels for drug and human smuggling operations is federally owned. Texas recently secured the island from Mexican drug cartels and cleared the undergrowth.
In a letter from the Biden administration’s International Boundary and Water Commission (USIBWC), Chief Engineer Ramon Macias wrote: “The USIBWC maintains that Fronton Island is federal land and falls under the jurisdiction of the IWBC. We respectfully request that the Texas General Land Office remove the obstruction.”
Macias pointed to two mud bridges installed by the Texas National Guard after Land Secretary Dawn Buckingham designated Fronton Island as federal land.
Fronton Island, known as the single most dangerous spot on the southern border, is now open for patrol thanks to the government’s hard work. @TxDPS & @TXMilitary!
Texas law enforcement agencies work around the clock to protect our state and its citizens from the dangerous effects of mass illegal activity. pic.twitter.com/Nrd9zAPAeg
— Dawn Buckingham (@DrBuckinghamTX) November 1, 2023
“The Biden administration has had nearly four years to secure our southern border, but it has chosen to ignore the safety of Texans,” Buckingham told Breitbart Texas. “Fronton Island and the cartel activity that continued there presented a clear and present danger to our community. Bomb, weapons, human and drug smuggling has plagued this region of South Texas for far too long. I have let you.”
Breitbart Texas reported in November 2023 that Mexican cartels have increased their leverage along the Texas border as National Guard troops completed the clearing of 215-acre Fronton Island, located along the Rio Grande in Starr County. They lost a huge tactical advantage. The island has long been used as a hub for human and drug smuggling.
Aerial view of Fronton Island (USIBWC)
“For decades, Fronton Island has been used by Mexican drug cartels as a haven when fleeing rival cartels and the Mexican military,” Texas DPS spokesman Lt. Chris Olivares told Breitbart at the time. -Told Texas. “Yet it has been used to facilitate cross-border criminal activity, primarily involving human and drug smuggling.”
“With Land Secretary Dawn Buckingham’s permission, the State of Texas has taken over the island by clearing it, fortifying it, and giving DPS and the National Guard operational control to prevent cross-border crime. ” Olivares said.
The USIBWC disputed Texas’ claim to the land in a letter sent to the Texas General Land Office on April 30. Macias writes:
Our respective survey bureaus discussed ownership of this island between August 2023 and September 2023. A review of documents submitted by the Texas General Land Office did not confirm when or how Texas officially acquired Fronton Island. USIBWC Asset [sic] Fronton Island became federally owned between 1970 and 1978 pursuant to the 1970 Treaty (with Mexico). If he has documentation to prove otherwise, he respectfully requests that he submit such documentation to the USIBWC within 30 days from the date of this letter.
Macias went on to accuse the state of Texas of trespassing on federal land when it conducted a sweep that successfully ended the cartel’s ability to exploit this strategic drug and human smuggling hub area. .
In response, Secretary Buckingham told Breitbart: “Texas is stepping up and we will not give up our claim to Fronton Island.” As long as the people in our distant Capitol continue to ignore the people who sent them there, the State of Texas and the General Land Office, under my direction, will continue to do everything we can to keep our families and communities safe. I will continue to do my best. ”
bob price He is an associate editor and senior news contributor on the Breitbart Texas Border Team. He is an original member of the Breitbart Texas team.Price is a regular panelist on Fox 26 Houston what is your point? sunday morning talk show.He is also the president of blue wonder cancer care products.
