Texas is refusing to comply with a cease-and-desist letter from the Biden administration over actions by the state that have prevented U.S. Border Patrol agents from accessing part of the border with Mexico.
in a letter To the Department of Homeland Security, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton rejected the Biden administration’s request for the state to “cease and desist” its takeover of Shelby Park, an epicenter of illegal immigration on the southwest border in Eagle Pass. .
“Because the facts and the law are on Texas’ side, the State will continue to use its constitutional authority to defend its territory, and I will continue to defend those legal efforts in court,” Paxton wrote.
A DHS spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday evening.
Paxton’s response comes after Department of Homeland Security General Counsel Jonathan Meyer managed to the state to stop blocking full U.S. Border Patrol access to approximately 2½ miles of the U.S.-Mexico border occupied by the state’s National Guard.
The latest border dispute comes after DHS officials said Saturday that a woman and two children drowned in the Rio Grande after Border Patrol agents “were physically prohibited by Texas officials from entering the area,” under orders from Republican Governor Greg Abbott.
The Texas Military Department disputed the DHS statement, saying its personnel were aware of a distress report but had not detected any migrants in distress.
A White House spokesperson criticized Abbott’s immigration policies in response to the drownings, saying in a statement this week that his “political tricks are cruel, inhumane and dangerous.”
In Wednesday’s letter, Paxton said any suggestion that the state was responsible for the deaths “is vile and, as you must know, completely inaccurate.”
The Biden administration has threatened to refer the matter to the Justice Department if Texas denies Border Patrol agents full access to the area.