politics
Bethany Blankley (Center Square)
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is one of 25 governors who have expressed support for protecting the Texas border. He was one of the first governors to send reinforcements to support Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's Operation Lone Star border security efforts about two years ago.
DeSantis responded Thursday to an ultimatum from the Biden administration to Abbott to tear down the concertina wire fence he built and relinquish control of a park in Eagle Pass, Texas. The president is also demanding that Texas allow access to a 2.5-mile stretch of public land along the Rio Grande so Border Patrol agents can allow illegal aliens to enter the country between ports of entry.
Doing so would be a direct violation of the laws established by Congress and the U.S. Constitution, and Abbott claims he refuses to comply with any of the demands.
The conflict escalated after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Border Patrol agents could destroy the Texas concertina barbed wire fence in Eagle Pass. The bill does not direct Texas to remove the wall or stop enforcing state law.
The Biden administration argues that Texas' measures are unconstitutional and interfere with Border Patrol operations. Abbott claims the president is encouraging criminal activity, has violated his oath of office, and has violated state and federal agreements.
The situation continues to escalate as President Joe Biden's call to federalize the Texas National Guard raises additional constitutional questions. If Texas troops were called in under constitutional authority to secure the Texas border and were federalized, the move could become an impeachable offense, a constitutional law expert argues.
DeSantis posted a video Thursday asking, “Can the federal government ignore the law and force a nation to allow a foreign invasion?” The Founding Fathers answered no.
“The president asking Texas to remove fortifications along the border to allow people to come in illegally is absolutely crazy,” DeSantis said. “If the Constitution had originally been understood to mean that states could not protect themselves from invasion, that the federal government could force states to allow invasions, the Constitution would never have been ratified in the first place. “Texas would never have joined the union if it had.”
He also pointed to Federalist 46, in which its founder, James Madison, described “circumstances under which federal encroachments may be mitigated by state action.” Citing Article 1, Section 10 of the Constitution, he said Texas “has every right to enforce border visas by incursion.”
The provision was cited in an invasion resolution passed by officials in 51 Texas counties, and more counties are expected to follow. Kinney, Goliad, and Terrell counties declared an invasion on July 5, 2022, the first in Texas and U.S. history. The constitutional issues that arise today are what they warned about in 2021 when they first issued their disaster declaration. Border crisis.
DeSantis also pointed to a situation where “for many years, liberal jurisdictions have been haven jurisdictions for enforcement of federal immigration laws.” They will deliberately act to subvert laws on the books and somehow that is considered okay.” But it’s not right for Texas to “act to enforce laws on the books so that they can stay safe and we can have a safe state.” “he said.
“So this whole thing is ridiculous, what Biden is doing,” DeSantis said. “Texas has the right to stand his ground. We in Florida have been sending people to help for years because we understand that it's not just a Texas problem, it's ultimately an American problem. Without sovereignty in this country we can no longer be a nation. “Texas has the right to stand its ground to stay the course, and Florida will continue to assist every step of the way.”
Reprinted with permission from The Center Square.