Posted on 07/21/2023 11:54:02 AM PDT by Red Badger
AUSTIN, Texas — The Biden administration is planning to sue Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX) in the coming days over the state's placement of a 1,000-foot-long barrier of floating buoys in the river at the U.S.-Mexico border, according to multiple reports Friday morning.
The Justice Department sent the three-term Republican governor a letter on Thursday alerting the state of its forthcoming lawsuit over its floating wall in Eagle Pass, Texas, according to CNN, which obtained a copy of the letter.
Courtesy image: Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX)
“The State of Texas’s actions violate federal law, raise humanitarian concerns, present serious risks to public safety and the environment, and may interfere with the federal government’s ability to carry out its official duties,” the DOJ wrote in the letter.
The DOJ added that federal law bars the "creation of any obstruction to the navigable capacity of waters of the United States, and further prohibits building any structure in such waters without authorization from the United States Army Corps of Engineers."
The legal action came just one day after the White House strongly criticized Texas's border fence but did not call it illegal.
A reporter asked about the fence during the afternoon press briefing and whether it violated any laws, leading to a sharp response from press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.
"I can't speak to the legal piece of the wires," Jean-Pierre told Dallas Morning News reporter Todd Gillman. "What I can say is that we're going to continue to condemn any actions, these types of actions, that [Abbott] takes. When it comes to treating these immigrants in an inhumane way, that we'll be very clear about."
Dozens of large buoys that are set to be deployed in the Rio Grande are unloaded, Friday, July 7, 2023, in Eagle Pass, Texas, where border crossings continue to place stress on local resources. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Abbott announced on June 8 that the state would erect a maritime wall in the coming weeks.
Texas moved forward with the installation in early July despite being sued by an Eagle Pass-based kayak tour company days earlier.
Epi's Canoe and Kayak Team owner Jesse Fuentes sued Abbott over the buoys on the basis that he would be "unable to conduct tours and canoe and kayak sessions in Eagle Pass because of the installation of the buoys" and will sustain "imminent and irreparable harm."
The lawsuit argued that Abbott's use of the Texas Disaster Act was unfounded. Abbott vowed to fight the Biden administration all the way to the highest court.
"We will see you in court," Abbott tweeted on July 7. "And don't think the Travis Co. Court will be the end of it. This is going to the Supreme Court. Texas has a constitutional right to secure our border."
Mexico also filed a complaint over the buoys, citing a violation of a water treaty.
Abbott initially said the barrier would serve as another layer of border security and deter immigrants from crossing in certain areas and funnel people who do cross to other parts of the river where federal and state officials can apprehend them.
"When we're dealing with 100 or 1,000 people, one of the goals is to slow down and deter as many of them as possible," Abbott said on June 8. "Some may eventually get to the border where they are going to face that multilayered razor wire and a full force of National Guard and DPS officers."
The impending lawsuit is not related to separate concerns about a rising number of injuries and deaths of immigrants as a result of attempting to cross the border into Eagle Pass. The state's concertina wire and buoys have made crossing so treacherous that one Texas Department of Public Safety trooper-medic told his superior these border policies "have stepped over the line into the inhumane," according to an email he sent that was obtained by the Washington Examiner.
Eighty House Democrats rallied together on Friday in a united call for the Biden administration to intervene in Abbott's Operation Lone Star border security initiative.
SEE VIDEOS AT LINK.......................
Locals told the Washington Examiner in June they were optimistic about the idea of a maritime barrier but worried the measure was already too little, too late.
Haisten Willis contributed to this report.
See what it takes to get the left all worried about wether the LAW is being followed? The LAW says that the feds are supposed secure our borders.
And will the Supreme Clowns turn down Garfinkel for lack of standing like they did the 20 State AG’s?
We all know the answer
I have an innovative solution: come here legally.
I know, it’s true, I am a genius.
The democrat party IS destroying this country.
Yeah, we will think about it when Mayorkas stops interfering with the border patrol's ability to carry out its duties.
one Texas Department of Public Safety trooper-medic told his superior these border policies “have stepped over the line into the inhumane,”
You should be fired immediately.
If you are not trying to cross the river illegally, then these barriers pose no threat whatsoever.
Answer: illegals go the hell home.
Go Texas.
That’s a lot less cruel than my suggestion. Rolls of razor wire anchored to the river bottom midstream at crossing points.
Heck, I think they should be wrapped in barbed wire.
The same argument goes for my firearms. If you are not threatening or attacking me or my family and friends, they pose no threat to you.
How about fix your damn countries instead of running away from them?
Pure genius observation but decades too late. The statement should be filed together with:”Islam is a religion of peace”.
Time for Texas to sue the Feds for allowing this foreign invasion of our TEXAS home to continue.
Could have been worse — buoys could have been seeded with water moccasins.
“and may interfere with the federal government’s ability to carry out its official duties”
An admission that the Federal government sees its official duty as to help people illegally enter the country.
BINGO!!
I think you nailed it.
If you can put ex-presidents in jail, why not go after sitting governors?
Raggedy-Ann can condemn away, we know it is prog and a B61-12 nuke would not shut it's mouth.
So, why can't it and the rest of it's leg-licker tribe just stay out of the way?
.
Signs would be cheaper...
Don’t just do something, Texas. Do something that a federal judge can’t stall or stop with a gavel.
This ain’t it.
Get serious.
If I were Texas I would start gathering the dead bodies of the migrants and dump them on the steps of the courts. They support the administrations failure to do their duty, they can live with the consequences. So unfair that multigenerational archers have to live with the results of the crime family that lives in DC.
Another thing, states should shut off access to state funded welfare, housing, medical care.
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