The future of a barrier of giant buoys that Texas Gov. Greg Abbott placed in the Rio Grande last year to deter migrant traffic is under scrutiny in a legal battle between the state and the Biden administration. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments on whether the barrier is authorized constitutionally as a means of defending against an invasion. The judges did not indicate when they would rule on this complex issue. Justice Department attorney Michael Gray argued that a governor cannot get around federal law simply by claiming an invasion, while Texas claims that the Rio Grande is not navigable and therefore not subject to federal regulation.
The state of Texas installed the bright orange buoys last July along a rocky and shallow stretch of the Rio Grande between Eagle Pass and Piedras Negras, Coahuila. The Biden administration has pointed to past ferry traffic in the area, the use of the area by vessels with the U.S. Coast Guard and the International Boundary and Water Commission, and the possibility of future projects to improve the river for commercial traffic. A previous ruling in December by a divided panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals stated that the buoys must be moved, but this decision was vacated in January for a rehearing by the full court.
The legal battle over the barrier in the Rio Grande is part of a larger conflict between the Biden administration and the state of Texas regarding border control measures. Texas is also fighting for the right to cut razor-wire fencing at the border and for access to a city park at the border that the state fenced off. Additionally, a decision is pending from a 5th Circuit panel on whether Texas can enforce a law that allows any Texas law enforcement officer to arrest individuals suspected of entering the country illegally. These disputes highlight the ongoing tensions between the federal government and individual states over immigration policies and border security. The outcome of the legal battles surrounding the Rio Grande barrier could have significant implications for future border control measures. The judges in the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals are tasked with carefully considering the constitutional and navigability issues at play in this complex case before issuing a ruling.
