In a year that's seen Texas dragged through the courts for various ways Gov. Greg Abbott has tried to handle the ongoing border crisis, he's ramping things up a little.
On Wednesday, Abbott took to X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) to say, "I officially declared an invasion at our border because of [President Joe] Biden's policies."
The Texas Gov. went on: “We are building a border wall, razor wire and marine barriers. We are also repelling migrants.”
Abbott attached a formal letter, sent to President Biden.
In the letter, the Governor argues the federal government isn't keeping up its end of the deal.
He accuses the federal government of not upholding its end of a constitutional agreement to the states to “protect each of them against Invasion.”
“The federal government’s failure has forced me to invoke Article I, § 10, Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution, thereby enabling the State of Texas to protect its own territory against invasion by the Mexican drug cartels,” Abbott said in the letter.
He continued: “Texans are paying the price for your failure. Ranches are being ripped apart, and homes are vulnerable to intrusion. Our border communities are regularly disrupted by human traffickers and bailouts. Deadly fentanyl is crossing the porous border to such a degree that it is now the leading cause of death for citizens between the ages of 18 and 45.”
The Texas Governor said he plans on using his authority to escalate efforts to repel migrants who try to enter the state via a border crossing Congress designated as illegal, and arrest those in violation of Texas law.
The mayor of Eagle Pass, Texas also issued a disaster declaration on Wednesday. The Texas border town has seen heavy influxes of migrants crossing the border, with drone cam footage capturing some 2,200 illegally crossing the border in one night this week. The U.S. Border Patrol confirmed the number.
Border Patrol officials spoke with NewsNation’s Ali Bradley, saying roughly 4,000 migrants arrived just on Wednesday and, at one point, the line stretched five miles long and into Mexico.
As of Tuesday, 25 Governors had sent letters to Biden, calling on the White House to provide information regarding migrant relocation and asylum claim processes.
The letter, signed by those 25 Governors, claims the federal government has turned “a blind eye” to the magnitude of the problem and has left governors unable to address it by not providing rapid, transparent data regarding the issue.
“As governors, we call on you to provide honest, accurate, detailed information on where the migrants admitted at the southern border are being relocated in the United States, in addition to comprehensive data on asylum claim timelines and qualification rates, and successful deportations,” the letter reads. “We ask for this information immediately, but also regularly as the crisis at the southern border continues.”
Despite speaking at the U.N. General Assembly this week, Biden nor the White House have made public statements regarding the crisis at the border, the Governors' letter, or Abbott's declaration of invasion.
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