By Canadian Press

Biden administration sues Texas governor over Rio Grande buoy barrier that’s meant to stop migrants

Jul 24, 2023 | 2:32 PM

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The Justice Department on Monday sued Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott over a floating barrier that the state placed on the Rio Grande to stop migrants from crossing into the U.S. from Mexico.

The lawsuit asks a court to force Texas to remove a roughly 1,000-foot (305-meter) line of bright orange, wrecking ball-sized buoys that the Biden administration says raises humanitarian and environmental concerns. The suit also claims that Texas unlawfully installed the barrier along without permission near the border city of Eagle Pass.

The buoys are the latest escalation of Texas’ border security operation that also includes razor-wire fencing, arresting migrants on trespassing charges and sending busloads of asylum-seekers to Democratic-led cities in other states.

In anticipation of the lawsuit, Abbott sent President Joe Biden a letter Monday that defended Texas’ right to install the barrier. He accused Biden of putting migrants at risk by not doing more to deter them from making the journey to the U.S.

The Biden administration has said illegal border crossings have declined significantly since new immigration rules took effect in May.

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The Justice Department warned Texas in a letter last week that the state had until Monday to commit to removing the barrier or face a lawsuit. The letter said the buoy wall “poses a risk to navigation, as well as public safety, in the Rio Grande River, and it presents humanitarian concerns.”

Mexico says the floating barrier violates treaties and asked the U.S. government in June to remove the buoys and razor wire.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott promised a legal showdown with the Biden administration on Monday in their fight over immigration enforcement, telling the federal government that the state won’t remove its floating barrier on the Rio Grande.

In a letter to the Department of Justice, Abbott said his state has the authority to protect its border. The Justice Department last week threatened to sue Texas over the buoys between Eagle Pass and Piedras Negras, Mexico. Immigration enforcement is typically the purview of the federal government, which says the buoy wall raises humanitarian and environmental concerns.

“Texas will see you in court, Mr. President,” Abbott wrote in his letter.

Texas installed a 1,000-foot (305-meter) line of bright orange, wrecking-ball-sized buoys along the river this month as part of Abbott’s two-year effort to deter immigrants from crossing the U.S.-Mexico border.

The state deployed the system without notifying the International Boundary and Water Commission or the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Mexico’s secretary of state asked the federal government asking them to intervene, saying it violates international treaties.

The Justice Department on Thursday sent Abbott a letter giving it until Monday to commit to removing the barrier.

“The floating barrier poses a risk to navigation, as well as public safety, in the Rio Grande River, and it presents humanitarian concerns,” the department’s letter said.

Abbott says President Joe Biden’s administration isn’t doing enough to control the border. The Biden administration says illegal border crossings have declined significantly since new immigration rules took effect in May.

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Gonzalez reported from McAllen, Texas.

Paul J. Weber And Valerie Gonzalez, The Associated Press