After much controversy, U.S. District Judge David Ezra ruled that the floating marine barriers in Eagle Pass, Texas must be removed.
“Governor Abbott announced that he was not 'asking for permission' for Operation Lone Star, the anti-immigration program under which Texas constructed the floating barrier,” said Judge Ezra.
“Unfortunately for Texas, permission is exactly what federal law requires before installing obstructions in the nation's navigable waters.”
The Texas governor responded by stating that the ruling to remove the barriers went against Texas’ sovereignty.
“Texas will appeal. Today’s court decision merely prolongs President Biden’s willful refusal to acknowledge that Texas is rightfully stepping up to do the job that he should have been doing all along,” said Gov. Abbott.
Abbott stated his belief that the ruling would be changed and that he would continue to fight to secure the border.
“This ruling is incorrect and will be overturned on appeal. We will continue to utilize every strategy to secure the border, including deploying Texas National Guard soldiers and Department of Public Safety troopers and installing strategic barriers.”
The Texas lawmaker ended his statement, saying that he was not opposed to taking the case to the Supreme Court of the United States.
“Our battle to defend Texas’ sovereign authority to protect lives from the chaos caused by President Biden’s open border policies has only begun. Texas is prepared to take this fight all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.”
In other news, after Alabama lawmakers refused to redraw congressional lines to create a new second district for black Alabama voters in which they would come close to comprising a majority, Federal judges have taken the matter into their own hands.
Deuel Ross, an NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund attorney who stated his case before the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS), gave his thoughts on the ruling.
“The court has once again confirmed that Black voters deserve two opportunity districts. We look forward to ensuring that the special master draws a map that provides Black voters with the full representation in Congress that they deserve.”
After SCOTUS ruled that Alabama’s one district violated the U.S. Constitution, the state legislators drew a new map that did not meet the requirements creating a second district in a state that has a black population of 27%.
Despite Alabama arguing that the maps were not in violation of the Constitution, the judges struck down the state’s rewritten maps as they viewed them to be insufficient.
