White House wants Texas border agents to be allowed to remove razor wire
TEXAS - The Biden administration asked the U.S. Supreme Court Tuesday to step in and allow Border Patrol agents to remove razor wire the state of Texas has placed along a 29-mile stretch of the Rio Grande River.
The emergency application from the Justice Department says the wire has "serious on-the-ground consequences…" for Border Patrol agents, preventing them from patrolling the border "…and the individuals they are charged with apprehending."
The filing comes after a federal appeals court last month ordered agents to stop cutting the wire, which Texas has installed as its own security measure along the US-Mexico border.
In a post on X, Governor Greg Abbott responded to the filing writing "See you in court."
The legal sparring came on the same day officials in New York City called described the latest bus trips of migrants from Texas as "bonkers."
The NYC Mayor's office lashed out over buses that arrived in New Jersey, on New Year's Eve, appearing to try to avoid a new city order requiring bus companies to give city officials 36 hours of advance notice of arrivals, and a list of passengers.
"This is new territory," said NYC Mayor Eric Adams. "And we are looking over every authority that we have."
Gov. Abbott posted online that the transports would continue until the Biden administration reversed course on its border policies.
Senior White House officials criticized Republican lawmakers Tuesday, accusing them of refusing to work on a solution. The President is looking for a package that includes more law enforcement, more judges, asylum processors and more resources for cities that are now receiving asylum seekers and migrants.
As many as 60 House Republicans were expected to visit the border Wednesday in Eagle Pass, TX. Texas Representative Tony Gonzalez said he felt like the current discussions over the issue are different, with more communities than just border communities starting to feel the impact of the problem.
Operations at four border locations that have been closed since last month, including at the Eagle Pass International Bridge 1, are expected to reopen Thursday. The locations were closed when staff was needed to assist Border Patrol in other locations that were seeing an increase in people coming across.