After the U.S. Supreme Court sided with the Biden administration, ruling that Border Patrol agents could cut or move razor wire that Texas officials installed along the southern border, the Lone Star State recently began contemplating whether to construct barbed wire on private properties.
Texas Border Czar Mike Banks informed ranchers of the state’s intention to install razor wire on their private property.
Texas escalates feud with federal government, telling ranchers SCOTUS ruling on razor wire not final, offering to give ranchers razor wire as migrants are now sneaking into US through private property https://t.co/K7UQqibZBU pic.twitter.com/BHn5MWdyP4
— Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) January 25, 2024
Banks’ statement comes after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Border Patrol agents could cut through barbed wire at the U.S.-Mexico border.
The installation of razor wire was ordered by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) and was used to deter illegal immigration, which has reached record numbers under President Joe Biden.
The wire was only cut in the past when federal officials felt that unlawful migrants were in danger of drowning in the Rio Grande.
The barbed wire is deployed in multiple cities across the Lone Star State, including Eagle Pass, Texas.
Eagle Pass, a town comprised of just 28,000 individuals, is the second city in the U.S. to encounter the highest number of illegal immigrants, given President Joe Biden’s refusal to secure the southern border.
To mitigate the consequences of unlawful migration, Abbott recently ordered Texas officials to seize Shelley Park, owned by Eagle Pass. The Texas governor pointed out that the park was a popular location for illegal immigrants to arrive in and then claim asylum to Border Patrol agents.
Considering that the Border Patrol’s presence in Shelley Park is gone, several ranchers across Texas have noted a significant increase in the number of illegal immigrants arriving on their properties.
Luis Valderrama, the owner of a 400-acre ranch in Texas, said, “Now they’re on my property.”
Since Texas took control of Shelley Park, Valderrama said he’s seen groups of illegal immigrants on his property daily.
Abbott has provided Border Patrol agents access to Valderrama’s land so that they may arrest the unlawful migrants.
To deter the illegal immigrants away from his property, Valderrama said, “I have an eight-foot fence and at the very top I have razor wire.”
Although Valderrama took measures to protect himself and his property, the illegal immigrants were able to cross past the razor wire.
“I’m watching these [migrants] cross and I’m like, ‘Wait til they come across. They’re not going to know what to do.’ Nah, they came up and they just hopped over it like deer. I couldn’t believe it,” Valderrama said.
