Graves, Rouzer Question DOJ Motives for Lawsuit Against Governor Abbott, State of Texas Over Border Security Measures

Press Release

"The Biden Administration's refusal to secure our Southern border has led to over 2.2 million encounters as of August 2023, following nearly 2.4 million in Fiscal Year (FY) 2022, a staggering number. Last year, the United Nations labeled the United States-Mexico border as the deadliest land crossing in the world.... Due to these failures, Texas Governor Greg Abbott has taken a number of steps to protect the State's border with Mexico. One initiative in Texas' efforts has been the installation of a chain of marine buoys in the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass, TX, which began on July 7, 2023…. The buoys are designed to be as humane as possible, while deterring people from attempting to cross through or under them into the United States.

The Biden Administration is weaponizing Section 10 of the RHA in their lawsuit, thus dragging the United States Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) into the White House's political fight. Section 10 of the RHA primarily focuses on ensuring navigation for the purposes of interstate commerce. Therefore, it is inappropriate to hijack this authority to bar a state from executing stronger and more robust border security policies which the Administration opposes. It is imperative that we ensure this Administration is not leveraging the navigation regulatory process to distract from its failure to secure our Sothern border."

Source