On Thursday, a federal judge in Washington D.C. issued a ruling on immigration that reversed plans by both Joe Biden and Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R-Texas) to reduce the flow of illegal aliens across the border, as reported by the Daily Caller.
Judge Emmet Sullivan, of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, blocked a policy by the Biden Administration that turned away illegal alien families with underage minors, out of concern that the families could spread the coronavirus. Sullivan’s order will take effect in two weeks.
On the same day, Governor Abbott had announced his intentions to use state resources at the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Texas National Guard to shut down six entry points along the border, aiming to stem the flow of both legal and illegal immigration. In his statement, Abbott declared that “the sheer negligence of the Biden Administration to do their job and secure the border is appalling.”
“The border crisis is so dire,” he continued, “that the U.S. Customs and Border Protection is requesting our help as their agents are overwhelmed by the chaos…the State of Texas remains committed to securing our border and protecting Americans.”
Victor Escalon, Regional Director for the Texas Department of Public Safety, had said that the order would shut down every entry point in Del Rio, where the largest influx of aliens took place.
“Six, seven days ago, Del Rio saw 400 migrants sitting underneath the bridge…in downtown Del Rio. There’s about 6,000 sitting there right now, and more are coming,” Escalon reported.
However, later that same day, Abbott issued another statement announcing that he would be reversing his decision to shut down the entry points. The governor blamed the Biden Administration for his reversal, claiming that the federal government had “flip-flopped to a different strategy that abandons border security and instead makes it easier for people to cross illegally and for cartels to exploit the border.”
Instead, Abbott said, he would “direct the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Texas National Guard to maintain their presence at and around ports of entry to deter crossings.”