Texas authorities are blocking the federal government from accessing part of the U.S.-Mexico border, the Biden administration claimed on Friday.
The Texas Department of Public Safety seized control of property in the Shelby Park region of Eagle Pass along the southern border on Thursday, as part of Republican Gov. Greg Abbott’s Emergency Declaration over the state’s illegal immigration crisis.
U.S. Border Patrol agents are now being prevented from entering or policing the area by the Texas National Guard, the Justice Department alleged in a court filing on Friday.
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“[The Texas National Guard] will not allow Border Patrol or [Department of Defense] personnel who support Border Patrol into the approximately 2.5-mile stretch along the national border near Shelby Park in any operational capacity,” Robert Danley, Customs and Border Protection official, stated in the filing. “I was further advised that Texas does not want Border Patrol to be able to arrest, process, or transport migrants out of the identified area.”
“Texas’s new actions since the government’s filing demonstrate an escalation of the State’s measures to block Border Patrol’s ability to patrol or even to surveil the border and be in a position to respond to emergencies,” the Justice Department alleged in a separate portion of the filing.
The court filing also includes photographic evidence of blockades set up to prevent border patrol from entering Shelby Park. Texas National Guard personnel and tactical vehicles can be seen guarding the blockades in some of the photos.
Abbott and the Biden administration have been in a years-long standoff over the southern border and how it should be policed. Abbott launched Operation Lone Star in 2021 to combat illegal immigration by reinforcing Texas’ southern border, including increased patrol guards, barriers in the Rio Grande River and razor wiring along the river’s bank.
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The Biden administration sued Texas over its efforts to uphold the law and arrest migrants who enter the country illegally. The administration has a separate lawsuit open against the state over its use of razor wire to deter migrants from crossing.
In turn, Texas sued the Biden administration for sending border patrol agents to cut down the razor wiring along the border. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton told the Supreme Court on Tuesday that granting the Biden administration’s request to get rid of the wiring will “needlessly endanger public safety.”
Texas has seen an increase in illegal immigration since President Joe Biden took office in 2021. Dozens of House Republicans visited the Eagle Pass southern border region in early January and reinforced the call for strengthened border security.
The White House, Texas Military Department and Abbott’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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