A US judge has barred federal agents from cutting concertina wire installed by Texas to block illegal aliens
Migrants try to get through razor wire surrounding a makeshift camp after crossing the border near El Paso, Texas, in May. © Getty Images / John Moore
A federal court judge in Texas has ruled that US President Joe Biden’s administration can no longer cut or remove razor wire deployed by the state along its border with Mexico to help stem a record influx of illegal aliens into the country.
US District Court Judge Alia Moses in Del Rio, Texas, issued her ruling on Monday, granting the state’s request for a temporary restraining order against the federal government. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration last week, saying federal agents were seen using heavy machinery to rip out large sections of the state’s concertina wire to facilitate “mass entry” of illegal aliens.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott called Monday’s court order “another win for Texas and our border mission.” He added, “Biden has created this crisis and has tried to block us at every turn.” The state also is fighting a legal battle with the federal government over its use of floating buoys to block migrants from crossing the Rio Grande River.
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The state government has installed border barriers in migration hot spots, such as the Eagle Pass crossing, and deployed National Guard units to help combat the border crisis. Texas troopers have arrested some illegal migrants on state trespassing charges, among other criminal statutes, and bused thousands to New York, Chicago, and other Democrat-controlled cities.
However, the restraining order is merely a temporary victory for the state. It applies only through November 13, unless it’s extended. Another hearing in the case has been scheduled for November 7. Moses ruled that, in the meantime, US Border Patrol agents can only cut the razor wire in medical emergencies.
The Biden administration has faced legal challenges from Republican-controlled states that are trying to combat the border crisis in lieu of the federal government securing the border. Enforcement of immigration laws is under federal jurisdiction, but Paxton has argued that Texas has a “sovereign right” to build border barriers. He also claimed that federal agents were illegally destroying state property when they removed the border wire.
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Illegal migration into the US has surged to record levels since Biden took office in January 2021. Nearly 2.48 million illegal aliens were encountered by Border Patrol agents in the government’s latest fiscal year, which ended on September 30, up 4.1% from the preceding 12 months. By comparison, just 458,000 illegal border crossings were reported during President Donald Trump’s last full fiscal year in office, which ended in September 2020.
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