The Justice Department on Monday filed a lawsuit against the State of Texas over its installation of a floating barrier to prevent people from swimming across the Rio Grande, arguing that interlocking buoys placed in the river by the state violated federal law.
The lawsuit came after Governor Greg Abbott of Texas, who heralded the installation of a 1,000-foot-long fence this month, denied the Justice Department’s request to voluntarily remove the buoys, vowing instead to fight in court to keep them in place. Mr. Abbott blamed President Biden for the large number of migrants crossing the border illegally.
“If you really care about people’s lives, you have to start enforcing federal immigration laws,” Abbott wrote. in a letter to President Biden on Monday. “In the meantime, Texas will use its full constitutional authority to respond to the crisis you’ve caused.”
There has been growing outcry among Democrats and even some in Texas law enforcement against others, increasingly aggressive tactics that the state is using to deter immigration, including installing extra layers of concertina wire along the banks of the Rio Grande. State police officers shouted at returning migrants and in some cases refused to provide water to those who asked.
In the pontoon fence lawsuit, the federal government argued that Texas violated part of the federal River and Harbor Appropriation Act prohibits the placement of structures in the waterways without federal approval.
“This floating barrier poses threats to navigation and public safety, and raises humanitarian concerns,” said Vanita Gupta, deputy attorney general, in a statement announcing the lawsuit. “In addition, the presence of the floating barrier has provoked a diplomatic protest from Mexico and threatens to harm US foreign policy.”
The federal government is asking a court to force Texas to remove already installed barriers and prohibit the installation of any new barriers elsewhere on the river.
The emerging legal battle represents the first time the Justice Department has directly challenged Abbott over his efforts to enforce immigration laws, sending thousands of National Guard troops and state police to stop migrants from entering Texas. The multibillion-dollar program, which began more than two years ago, is called Operation Lone Star.
Various containment tactics currently employed by Texas authorities, described in interviews and in internal emails among Department of Public Safety officials seen by The New York Times, have been used at points along the border where illegal crossings are common, particularly in the small border town of Eagle Pass.
Some officials within the agency have raised concerns that the new aggressive approach, begun about two months ago and referred to by top DPS officials as a “hold on to the ropes” operation, has resulted in injuries to migrants.
Border Patrol officials have also complained to Texas law enforcement, according to a memo sent to DPS and obtained by The Times, that an increase in concertina wire along the river, which is located there by the Texas National Guard, has made it harder for border agents to help migrants and could lead to more drownings.
On Friday, more than 80 Democratic representatives in the US House of Representatives, including all from Texas, signed a letter to Mr Biden calling on him to investigate the Lonely Star Campaign and stop “Mr Abbott’s actions”.dangerous and cruel actions” by asserting the authority of the federal government over immigration law.
The pontoon fences, announced by Mr Abbott last month, cover only a small portion of the 1,254-mile border between Mexico and Texas. But their deployment is an opportunity for Mr. Abbott to pose a direct challenge to Mr. Biden on the issue of border security.
The Texas governor, a third-term Republican and former state attorney general, is eager to join a legal battle with the Democratic president over immigration law enforcement.
“Texas will see you in court, Mr. President,” Abbott wrote in the letter.
The federal government, in Monday’s lawsuit, focuses on pontoon fences and federal laws around navigable waters and does not challenge other tactics and policies employed by the Abbott administration as part of Operation Lone Star.
