Border standoff reaches Congress: Speaker Mike Johnson backs Texas banning federal agents
House Speaker Mike Johnson is throwing his support behind Texas amid an escalation in the row between the Biden administration and the Lonestar State – over the question of jurisdiction of the southern border.
After a phone call with Gov. Greg Abbott Monday, Johnson insisted Texas should ‘exercise police powers’ at the border to protect its people and the Biden administration must not stand in the way.
‘While we fight for the federal government to do its job, it is the expectation of the U.S. House of Representatives that the Biden Administration will not interfere as Texas fulfills its responsibilities,’ Johnson said in a statement.
As migrant crossings have swelled, Abbott has deployed state law enforcement on the border and implemented his own deterrence mechanisms that the Biden administration has fought against.
And the drama around border policies this week doesn’t end there.
The House plans to move forward articles of impeachment for Biden’s DHS Sec. Mayorkas Tuesday. The Senate also plans to unveil a hotly-contested national security and immigration deal – that former President Donald Trump is throwing cold water on.
After a phone call with Gov. Greg Abbott, Speaker Mike Johnson insisted Texas should ‘exercise police powers’ at the border to protect its people and insisted the Biden administration not stand in the way.
But the border showdown in Texas has pressed its way into the halls of Congress.
Last week the Supreme Court ruled the Department of Homeland Security could tear down razor wire Abbott had installed along the border in Eagle Pass, Texas.
Following the ruling, Abbott said he would instead put up more wire.
Republicans have lined up behind Abbott. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, accused Democrats of allowing migrants into the country in a scheme to ‘destroy Western civilization.’
‘It is a purposeful effort to deluge our society and to undermine our way of life to destroy Western civilization,’ he said. ‘[Abbott] has the duty the right and the ability under the Constitution of the United States to stand up and defend the people of Texas and we’re going to stand alongside the governor.’
‘I thank God for Texas,’ said Rep. Brian Babin. ‘If this becomes the hill to die on I can tell you that I will, gladly.’
Lately Biden has been urged by some Texas Democrats to federalize the National Guard and seize control from Abbott. Abbott has deployed the Guard along the border to step in for Border Patrol.
Abbott has seized control of Shelby Park in Eagle Pass – a notoriously high-traffic area for crossings – and prevented federal border agents from doing their job there.
Immigration enforcement is typically a federal responsibility, but Abbott signed a law last month that he hopes will allow state law enforcement to arrest migrants for unlawful crossings at state-level charges and deport them to Mexico.
Meanwhile, the House is set to advance articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Sec. Alejandro Mayorkas on Tuesday and the Senate is expected to release details of its long-awaited national security and immigration package.
As migrant crossings have swelled, Abbott has deployed state law enforcement on the border and implemented his own deterrence mechanisms that the Biden administration has fought against
Last week the Supreme Court ruled the Department of Homeland Security could tear down razor wire Abbott had installed along the border in Eagle Pass, Texas. Following the ruling, Abbott said he would instead put up more wire
Democrats held their own news conference to tear into the GOP’s ‘sham’ impeachment and accuse Johnson of caving to the far right and Donald Trump’s demands.
‘This is at best a sham,’ said Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., top Democrat on the Homeland Security Committee, as he insisted Mayorkas was simply carrying out Biden’s policies.
‘If the impeachment clause could talk, it would beg for the Republicans to stop shaming its name,’ said Rep. Dan Goldman, R-N.Y., as he warned Republicans they were squandering their best opportunity at a legislative fix.
‘What is very clear is that Secretary Mayorkas and President Biden have agreed to concessions that Republicans have never gotten before and will never get again, because the administration wants to actually solve the problems at the border.’
An aerial view of the area as Texas National Guard soldiers continue to take security measures at Eagle Pass, Texas at Mexico-US border on January 28, 2024
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said his Democrats are ‘ready, willing and able’ to work on a bipartisan immigration deal, ‘but the extreme MAGA Republicans have been directed by Donald Trump not to work together to address the challenges at the border.
At a rally over the weekend Trump said he was proud to take credit for tanking the Senate immigration deal – which Speaker Mike Johnson has said is likely ‘dead on arrival’ based on media reports he’s seen of it.
Senate negotiators say the deal would expedite removals and shorten the wait time for asylum case decisions.
‘No bill is better than a bad bill,’ Trump said. House Republicans have lined up behind him.
‘Biden is salivating at the prospect of this horrible Senate compromise,’ said Rep. Beth Van Duyne, R-Texas.
‘It’s the rescission of these executive orders that has created this crisis,’ said Foreign Affairs Chair and former Homeland Security Chair Mike McCaul, R-Texas. But he seemed to suggest House Republicans had not taken the Senate deal off the table.
‘If the Senate passes something with significant policy changes, I think we’ll take a look at that.’