A divided Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in favor of the Biden administration to allow border patrol agents to remove or cut through razor wire installed by Texas officials at the southern border.
Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh voted to reject the federal government’s request. None of the justices provided an explanation for their vote.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) was disappointed with the ruling and stated that the fight was not over.
This is not over.
Texas' razor wire is an effective deterrent to the illegal crossings Biden encourages.
I will continue to defend Texas' constitutional authority to secure the border and prevent the Biden Admin from destroying our property.https://t.co/pV7Cuq57d1
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) January 22, 2024
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick called the decision “disappointing and frustrating” and even singled out Chief Justice John Roberts for siding with the “liberals on the Court” in his decision.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) argued that the barriers impede the U.S. government’s ability to patrol the border, a responsibility given to the federal government rather than the individual states.
“Texas’ political stunts, like placing razor wire near the border, simply make it harder and more dangerous for frontline personnel to do their jobs. Ultimately, we need adequate resources and policy changes to address our broken immigration system,” said a White House spokesperson.
Sen. Marco Rubio, based on this decision by the Supreme Court, asked how the Biden administration could be discussing a border security deal when they just went all the way to the Supreme Court in an effort to stop border security.
This was not the first disagreement on border security between Texas and the White House. Abbott has come up with numerous ways of giving state support to the crisis at the border.
Earlier in January, the DOJ sued Texas for allowing state law enforcement to arrest people who entered the country illegally. The state also installed floating barriers in the Rio Grande and began busing migrants out of Texas to sanctuary cities across the U.S.
Texas had previously installed 30 miles of concertina wire along the border to prevent illegal immigrants from crossing the border. The state initially sued Border Patrol Agents for removing the razor wire claiming that they trespassed and destroyed state property.
