The Biden administration has petitioned the Supreme Court to force Border Patrol agents to remove razor wire on the U.S.-Mexico border that the state of Texas installed to prevent migrants from crossing into Texas.
In Tuesday's filing, the administration argued it had jurisdiction under federal law to remove Texas workers' concertina wire installed near the Rio Grande.
“Federal law clearly authorizes Border Patrol agents to enter private property within 25 miles of the border without a warrant,” the Justice Department said in its appeal to the Supreme Court.
The Justice Department also claimed that razor wire installed along 30 miles of land near Eagle Pass, Texas, is preventing federal agents from accessing parts of the border.
“Like other law enforcement officers, Border Patrol agents who operate under difficult conditions at the border make decisions on a case-by-case basis, sometimes on the fly, about how to enforce federal immigration laws while maintaining public safety. ”, the filing states.
“However, the injunction prohibits personnel from entering the very borders they are tasked with patrolling, or from passing or moving through physical obstacles erected by the state that impede access to the persons they are tasked with arresting or inspecting. There is.”
Last October, Texas sued the federal government to stop Border Patrol agents from cutting razor wire.
In December, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit temporarily blocked investigators from cutting it.
Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott vowed Tuesday to continue building his border wall despite a potential Supreme Court challenge.
“Biden is begging SCOTUS to let him cut the razor wire TX on the border. See you in court,” Texas Governor says said in a tweet.
“America and the courts will reject Biden's hostility to our immigration laws. Texas will continue to deploy the National Guard to build our border wall and repel illegal immigration,” he added.
The Lone Star State and the Biden administration are at odds over immigration enforcement, as Abbott says record levels of illegal border crossings are overwhelming towns along the U.S.-Mexico border.
The Justice Department last week threatened to sue the state of Texas if it implements a new law that would allow Texas authorities to arrest, imprison, prosecute and deport immigrants who enter the country illegally.
The Justice Department also sued the state over floating barriers erected on the Rio Grande, but a court ordered Mr. Abbott to remove them.
Abbott said Texas is busing more than 95,000 migrants to sanctuary cities such as New York and Chicago as part of an effort to urge President Biden to “reverse the open borders policy.”
