Texas: The Real Reason Gov. Greg Abbott Is Considering Declaring 'Invasion'

By Mary Webber First Posted: May 01, 2022 10:22 PM EDT

Texas Governor Greg Abbott's top lawyers and Texas attorney general, Ken Paxton, have discussed declaring an "invasion" as migrant numbers climbed at the U.S.-Mexico border.

According to The New York Times, declaring an "invasion" could invoke actual war powers to seize broader state authority on the southern border.

The outlet noted that Abbott could officially declare an "invasion" to conform with a clause in the Constitution that said states could not engage in war except when "actually invaded."

The Republican governor has remained open to the move. However, he has concerns about the consequences of the action.

During a recent news conference, Abbott noted that if they use the said strategy, it could expose law enforcement in Texas to being prosecuted. But he added that it was something that they were looking into.

The governor has already mobilized thousands of National Guard troops to sit at border posts and ordered stiffer safety inspections of trucks coming from Mexico, which has caused a disruption to the international trade.

He has also ordered the construction of 20 miles of new border fencing and the repurposing of some state prisons to hold migrants charged with trespassing.

Abbott has also funded border towns for law enforcement and allotted money for buses to take willing migrants from Texas to Washington D.C.

The governor also paid more than $3 billion for border security. On top of that, he approved another $500 million on Friday.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Wants to Declare 'Invasion' Amid Influx of Migrants at U.S.-Mexico Border

Federal agents recorded around 129,000 crossings into the U.S. border from Mexico in March, with about 11,000 more than during the same month last year.

Greg Abbott wants to declare an "invasion" under the U.S. Constitution and start using state personnel to deport immigrants.

According to Texas Tribune, it has been gaining heat as Texas faces the Title 42 lift, which is the pandemic health rule that immigration authorities have used to quickly expel migrants, including asylum-seekers.

Abbott responded to the revocation of Title 42 by imposing a commercial vehicle policy inspection at the border. It prompted negotiations with border Mexican governors to bring the inspection to an end.

State Sen. Juan "Chuy" Hinojosa, a Democrat from the Rio Grande Valley, said that as long as the administration of President Joe Biden does not implement "proper immigration controls," manpower, and equipment, Abbott will keep pushing on this issue until it reaches the attention of Washington. Hinojosa serves on the Senate Border Security Committee.

Abbott said the issue of a constitutional "invasion" at the border was one he has been studying since he was attorney general over eight years ago. However, he noted that there were several issues that they were looking at that they have been provided no answer on.

"These are people who already have papers to roam freely into the United States... As soon as we drop them off across the border, they would only come right back across the border.... So all we would be doing is creating a revolving door," Abbott said.

U.S. Border With Mexico

The Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) released a new report Wednesday that showed that around 1.9 million illegal immigrants who entered the U.S. throughout the first year of the Biden presidency were apprehended, The Post Millennial reported.

FAIR wrote in the report that it was an increase of roughly $9.4 billion over the past year, with illegal migrants likely causing a net fiscal burden of at least $143.1 billion.

The leading states by the population of illegal migrants are California with 3.266 million, followed by Texas, Florida, New Jersey, and New York.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

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