Texas Governor Greg Abbott, flanked by 13 Republican governors, reaffirmed his authority over a segment of the southern U.S. border amid an escalating conflict with President Joe Biden’s administration.
Speaking at a press conference in Eagle Pass, a border town adjacent to Piedras Negras, Mexico, Abbott briefed his counterparts on Operation Lone Star, which he initiated in 2021 to address the border crisis, before addressing the media.
Joining Abbott was Tennessee Governor Bill Lee, who expressed readiness to deploy additional state troops to support Abbott’s efforts.
Thirteen states, including Tennessee, Arkansas, Florida, Iowa, Idaho, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming, have already contributed personnel and resources to Operation Lone Star.
In addition to Governor Lee, Abbott was accompanied by Governors Sarah Huckabee Sanders (Arkansas), Brian Kemp (Georgia), Brad Little (Idaho), Eric Holcomb (Indiana), Kim Reynolds (Iowa), Jeff Landry (Louisiana), Tate Reeves (Mississippi), Mike Parson (Missouri), Greg Gianforte (Montana), Jill Pillen (Nebraska), Chris Sununu (New Hampshire), and Spencer Cox (Utah).
Despite the federal government having nominal control over immigration policy, Abbott has been engaged in a dispute with the Biden administration regarding border enforcement in recent months.
Initially, the disagreement revolved around whether Texas authorities had the authority to deploy razor wire and station state troops at the border. Subsequently, Abbott began asserting that Texas had been left to fend for itself.
In December, Abbott signed a controversial Texas law, SB4, which transferred immigration enforcement responsibilities to state officers.
America’s Governors have banded together to make one thing clear: Texas has the right to protect & defend our border.
We will NOT tolerate this invasion the Biden Admin’s open border policies enabled.
President Biden — it is your turn now to enforce the law & secure the border. pic.twitter.com/3B9zcl2VX9
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) February 4, 2024
Since the law’s implementation, Texas has consistently disregarded the Biden Administration’s immigration directives—even defying a Supreme Court ruling that allowed federal agents to remove the razor wire laid by state authorities, without addressing whether Texas had to cease laying it initially.
Tensions escalated last month when Texas National Guard troops seized Shelby Park, a public space within Eagle Pass, and barred federal Border Patrol agents’ access. In a statement on Sunday, Abbott declared that the Texas National Guard and Department of Public Safety “continues to hold the line.”
“We’re here to send a loud and clear message that we are banning together to fight to ensure that we will be able to maintain our Constitutional guarantee that states will be able to defend against any type of imminent danger or an invasion,” Abbott stated
On Sunday, only 13 governors were in attendance, but back in January, 25 Republican governors issued a joint statement in support of Governor Abbott.
They expressed their belief that Texas has a legal right to protect its border, stating they “stand in solidarity with our fellow Governor, Greg Abbott, and the State of Texas in utilizing every tool and strategy, including razor wire fences, to secure the border.”
In a separate development on Saturday, the White House confirmed that President Joe Biden had a conversation with President Andrés Manuel López Obrador of Mexico. During their discussion, they addressed the “challenges at our shared border” and pledged to maintain their productive partnership.
A statement added: “The two leaders reiterated their shared commitment to bolster our joint efforts to counter transnational criminal organizations involved in the illicit trafficking of drugs, guns, and people. They agreed to continue close cooperation between our two governments in improving the lives of Americans and Mexicans and in advancing opportunities throughout the Western Hemisphere.”
