The Biden administration is suing Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott for having the nerve to get in the way of its plans to truck illegal immigrants anywhere the government pleases.
“In our constitutional system, a State has no right to regulate the federal government’s operations,” the Department of Justice wrote in a motion seeking to undo an executive order Abbott issued on Wednesday, according to The Texas Tribune.
Abbott’s order allowed Texas state police to pull over vehicles suspected of carrying coronavirus-positive illegal immigrants.
On Thursday, Attorney General Merrick Garland rebuked Abbott for having the audacity to issue such an order and said it needed to be rescinded, according to the Tribune.
A day later, the Department of Justice’s lawsuit was filed, claiming “this restriction on the transportation of noncitizens would severely disrupt federal immigration operations.”
However, Abbott reminded the federal government in a letter to Garland that Texans generally retreat no further than the air at their backs.
After telling Garland that he is not backing down from a “High Noon”-style constitutional crisis if that’s what the federal government wants, Abbott said Garland has it all backward.
“Your actions, combined with the actions and omissions of the Biden Administration, directly conflict with my authority as Governor; and, candidly, conflict with the duty and obligation imposed on the Biden Administration to apply and enforce the immigration laws passed by the United States Congress,” Abbott wrote.
The governor explained his refusal to kowtow to Washington in a statement.
“The Biden Administration has created a constitutional crisis between the federal government and the State of Texas. This stems from the Biden Administration’s refusal to enforce immigration laws and allow illegal immigrants with COVID-19 to enter our country,” Abbott said.
“As our communities are overrun and overwhelmed by the record-high influx of migrants, cartels and smugglers profit off the chaos. Not only that, but this crisis also extends beyond the border as deadly drugs like fentanyl infiltrate our communities.
“This already dangerous situation continues to deteriorate as the Biden Administration knowingly imports COVID-19 into Texas from across the border — willfully exposing Texans and Americans alike. President [Joe] Biden has a duty and a responsibility to protect and uphold our nation’s sovereignty, yet he has long-since abdicated his authority to do so,” he said.
Abbott said he is accountable to the people of Texas, not federal bureaucrats eroding his state’s safety.
“As the Governor of Texas, I have a responsibility to protect the people of Texas — a responsibility that grows more urgent by the day while the Biden Administration sits on the sidelines,” the governor continued. “I take very seriously my duties and responsibilities as the Governor of the State of Texas. I have the authority, and duty, under the constitutions of the United States and of Texas to protect Texans and our nation.
“I also have the authority under long-established emergency response laws to control the movement of people to better contain the spread of a disaster, such as those known to have COVID-19. My duty remains to the people of Texas, and I have no intention of abdicating that,” he said.
“Until President Biden and his Administration do their jobs to enforce the laws of our nation and protect Americans, the State of Texas will continue to step up to protect our communities and uphold the rule of law.”
Abbott explained that he had no choice but to limit the spread of COVID-19.
“The dramatic rise in unlawful border crossings has also led to a dramatic rise in COVID-19 cases among unlawful migrants who have made their way into our state, and we must do more to protect Texans from this virus and reduce the burden on our communities,” Abbott said in a separate statement on his website. “This Executive Order will reduce the risk of COVID-19 exposure in our communities.”
Abbott’s order authorizing vehicle stops said that Texans face a legitimate health risk from illegal immigrants who cross the border and bring the coronavirus with them, citing a 900 percent hike in COVID-19 cases in migrant detainees in the Rio Grande Valley.
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