(USNewsMag.com) – As the federal government continues its battle with the Lone Star State over which side is properly handling the immigration and border crisis, the Texas Attorney General is telling the Biden administration to take a hike, reaffirming the state’s refusal to give up their control over the parts of the border in its territory.
On Wednesday, Jan. 17, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton wrote in a letter that Texas is committed to keeping its authority over the Shelby Park area of Eagle Pass, Texas, and dismissed the federal government’s recent demand to yield its control over the region. The letter comes in response to the demand, which was sparked by a recent incident in which three people drowned in the Rio Grande River while trying to cross into the US illegally.
The Biden administration is putting the blame on the Texas National Guard for turning away Border Patrol agents trying to assist the drowning victims, while Texas maintains that the three victims were already dead by the time the agents came to the Shelby Park area. A court filing from the Department of Justice (DOJ) proved this to be true, revealing that federal authorities received a top from Mexican officials about the drownings but failed to inform state officials in time.
Despite the ongoing legal battles launched against Texas by the DOJ attempting to stop Texas from installing razor wire and a buoy barrier with a net in the middle of the river, Paxton asserted that the Lone Star State will continue Gov. Greg Abbott’s efforts under Operation Lone Star to secure its border. Abbott also recently signed a bill allowing Texas law enforcement to defy federal immigration policy by detaining illegal border crossers and immediately deporting them after quick trials.
Paxton contested the claims that Texas was responsible for the recent drownings and said the facts and the law were both on the state’s side, which he said will continue to exercise its “constitutional authority” to protect its own territory due to the federal government’s failure to do so.
The end of 2023 saw a record number of illegal immigrant encounters at the southern border. In December, over 300,000 encounters were recorded.
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