Republican Governor Greg Abbott of Texas plans to expand his water border wall in anticipation of a surge of migrants ahead of President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration, according to reports.
Lone Star State officials are reportedly surveying a section of the Rio Grande near Shelby Park in Eagle Pass, and more bright orange buoys could be installed as soon as Wednesday. According to NewsNation.
The newspaper reported that the Texas Department of Public Safety is preparing for an increase in illegal border crossings by immigrants, fearing a crackdown when President Trump, 78, returns to the White House in January.
The president-elect has vowed to launch the largest deportation operation in U.S. history once he takes office.
President Trump also introduced several measures aimed at curbing illegal border crossings during his first term as the 45th president, including the “Remain in Mexico” policy that required asylum seekers to await immigration inspection south of the border. is expected to be reimposed.
Mr. Abbott, 67, last year installed a length of interconnected 4-foot-wide spherical buoys (which rotate when grabbed) in the treacherous river that separates Texas and Mexico to stem record levels of illegal immigration crossings. He ordered the construction of a 1,000-foot section.
The buoy barrier was installed in a section of the Rio Grande known as a hotspot for human and drug smuggling.
On Saturday, Abbott I posted a video on X It promotes floating ocean barriers.
“The buoys strengthen our efforts to deter and repel illegal immigration,” the governor wrote. “Despite efforts by the Biden-Harris administration to remove these barriers from the river, that’s exactly where they will remain.”
Mr. Abbott's buoy wall, like other measures he has deployed to combat illegal immigration, faces some legal challenges.
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in July reversed a lower court's ruling and ruled that the buoys can remain in place while a broader federal lawsuit proceeds.
The Biden-Harris administration has accused Texas of violating the federal Rivers and Harbors Act by building a seawall in navigable waters without permission from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
The water-based barrier, designed by Cochrane USA, cost the state nearly $1 million.
Mr. Abbott's office did not respond to The Post's request for comment.
