WASHINGTON — A closely divided Supreme Court on Monday allowed Border Patrol agents to cross or move Razor wire installed in Texas As part of the state’s efforts to prevent illegal border crossings at the US-Mexico border.
Court In a 5-4 vote, it granted the emergency request filed by the Biden administration, which claims Texas is obstructing the agents from carrying out their duties.
The brief order noted that four conservative members of the nine-justice court would reject the government’s request. They were Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh.
The Biden administration says the wire prevents agents from reaching migrants who have already crossed the border into the United States.
Texas Governor Gregg Abbott, a Republican, installed razor wire near the Rio Grande at Eagle Pass as part of an operation to address illegal immigration that has brought the state into conflict with the Biden administration.
Texas sued Border Patrol agents after they cut a section of razor wire, alleging the agents trespassed on state property and caused damage.
A federal judge ruled for the Biden administration, but the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned that decision last month, saying agents could not cut or move the wire unless there was a medical emergency.
Included in Abbott’s immigration enforcement plan called Operation Lone Star moving thousands of migrants to Democratic-led cities and arrests migrants on charges of trespassing. The state previously placed buoys on the Rio Grande to block crossings and sued the Biden administration. The barrier remains in place while the trial continues.
Even as the Biden administration appealed to the Supreme Court, the conflict intensified.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton refused The Biden administration is demanding that the state refuse to take over a public park in Eagle Pass. This happened after an incident three people drowned Trying to cross the Rio Grande. The Department of Homeland Security said Border Patrol agents were “physically barred” from entering the area while responding to the incident.
“It’s impossible to say what might have happened if the Border Patrol had past access to the area, including through surveillance trucks that helped monitor the area,” Attorney General Elizabeth Prelogar said in the lawsuit on behalf of the Biden administration. .
Paxton said Monday that the Supreme Court ruling “allows Biden to continue his illegal efforts to aid foreign occupation of America.”
“Destroying Texas’ border barriers will not help law enforcement or the safety of American citizens,” Paxton said X said. “This fight is not over and I look forward to defending the sovereignty of our state.”