Houston Public Media reports on U.S. Justice Department’s push to eliminate Texas’ floating border barrier in federal court

Seeking immediate removal of a floating barrier that Texas deployed in the Rio Grande to deter migrants, the U.S. Justice Department told an Austin federal judge Tuesday that the barrier threatens U.S.-Mexico relations and was installed without appropriate federal authorization.

Texas argued that the barrier — a 1,000-foot-long string of buoys and saw blades supporting a submerged mesh net — is not a structure that required authorization. The state’s lawyers claimed that Texas had notified the international body that regulates the Rio Grande before the barrier was installed.

However, U.S. District Judge David A. Ezra dismissed Texas’ argument that the state has the right to defend itself against an “invasion” of drug cartels. He emphasized that as a United States District Court, his role is not to engage in political comment but to make a legal decision.

The floating barrier was deployed in Eagle Pass in July as part of Governor Greg Abbott’s Operation Lone Star, a multibillion-dollar effort to reduce illegal immigration at the Texas-Mexico border. When the Justice Department called for the removal of the barrier, Abbott refused to comply, leading to federal officials suing the state.

During the hearing, Hillary Quam, the U.S.-Mexico border coordinator for the U.S. State Department, testified that the barrier has become a diplomatic issue between the two countries. Mexico has indicated that the buoys are a violation of treaties and Mexico’s president has mentioned the barrier six times in his daily press conferences since June.

Unlike the border wall, which is located on the U.S. side of the Rio Grande, the buoy barrier floats in international waters and is subject to treaties between the two countries. The International Boundary and Water Commission, the body that regulates the Rio Grande, initiated a complaint about the barrier with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Joseph Shelnutt, who investigated the complaint for the Corps of Engineers, testified that the state failed to obtain a required permit before installing the barrier.

The state’s lawyers argued that Texas Department of Public Safety officers had met with representatives of the International Boundary and Water Commission prior to installation, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers did not speak to any state officials during its investigation.

During the hearing, it was revealed that the barrier had drifted to Mexico’s side of the river. Texas moved the barrier closer to the U.S. side, citing caution. Loren Flossman, a senior consultant for Cochrane International, the group responsible for installing the barrier, testified that more than 70 anchors hang from the buoys to prevent drifting. However, he could not explain how the barrier had drifted to the Mexican side of the river.

Federal and state lawyers have until Friday to submit closing arguments, and Judge Ezra stated that his decision would follow as soon as possible. The outcome of this case will have significant implications for U.S.-Mexico relations and the ongoing immigration debate in Texas.

Original Story at www.houstonpublicmedia.org – 2023-08-23 15:55:39