A Texas Lieutenant Governor has gone on an astonishing rant about an “invasion” of a “cartel army” of migrants - as a stand-off between Texas and federal authorities prompts fears of a “civil war”.
Dan Patrick, the deputy to Texas governor Gregg Abbott, stated Texas has the right to defend America as he was questioned on the high tensions between federal immigration officers and the Texas National Guard. The sides are embroiled in a court battle after the state’s seizure of Shelby Park near Eagle Pass, the removal of a razor wire put up by Texas, and the establishment of buoys in the Rio Grande.
Maria Bartiromo, anchoring the Fox News show, challenged Patrick on how far the dispute between Texas and the Biden administration. would go. “What is this going to turn into a civil war? I mean, you've got the Texas rights versus federal rights, both sides with guns?” she said.
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Migrants walking along the razor wire fence after crossing into the United States in Eagle Pass, which was seized by Texas authorities (Anadolu via Getty Images)Patrick responded that Texas has a “right to defend our citizens” and a “right to defend this country”. He added: “These young men and women who serve our National Guard and our DPS, these are the best of the best. Why would he want to send anyone down to confront them?”
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The Supreme Court narrowly ruled in favour of the Biden administration, permitting agents to continue cutting the razor wire set up by Texas in an emergency appeal. Texas, meanwhile, continues to fortify the area and has made clear it has no plans to evacuate the Shelby Park area, Fox News reported.
Illegal immigration across the Mexico border has risen rapidly in recent years (Luis Torres/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)Border agents argue that as a result of the razor wire their ability to safely apprehend undocumented migrants has been impeded - but the US Border Patrol said just last week that they had “no plans” to dismantle the wire. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has been issued two articles of impeachment by House Republicans who accuse him of “willful and systemic refusal to comply with the law”.
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The House will vote soon on the motion, according to speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. It requires only a majority to pass the House, before the Senate holds a trial requiring a two-thirds vote for conviction. This is an unlikely outcome in the Democratic-run Senate, with Democrats arguing the Republicans have pushed forward a sham impeachment process which doesn’t have sufficient constitutional grounds.
Dan Patrick addresses the media outside of Shelby Park during a border visit amid the crisis (Getty Images)In Patrick’s astonishing and demonising rant he described migrants as like a “cartel army”. He told Bartiromo on Fox’s Sunday Morning Futures: “It's a cartel army. You know, the founders never dreamed we'd have a president like this one who would just open the door to everyone. And they said, well, invasion if an army came. Well, we're facing an army. We're facing an army, but they're well-armed. They're well coordinated.
“Don't mess with Texas. We're serious about securing our border. And I'm glad the president stood down on Friday and did not confront us. That would be the wrong thing to do. We don't want a confrontation and they shouldn't want a confrontation. 'Well, we're just doing our job. Let us do our job.'”
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The Biden administration says Texas is impeding their ability to control the borders (AFP via Getty Images)
The Biden administration contends that Texas is interfering with the successful enforcement of federal immigration law, describing it as a “federal responsibility” and accusing Texas of making it “harder for frontline personnel to do their jobs and to apply consequences under the law”. The spokesperson from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) added: “We can enforce our laws and administer them safely, humanely, and in an orderly way.”
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