The Biden administration on Wednesday sued Texas over a new law that allows authorities to arrest immigrants who enter the country illegally.
The lawsuit, filed in the US District Court for the Western District of Texas, comes after the Justice Department threatened Republican Gov. Greg Abbott last week that legal action would be taken unless the state backed off from enforcing the new law, dubbed SB4 or the Senate Bill. law 4, which is scheduled to take effect on March 5.
“The United States brings this action to preserve its exclusive authority under federal law to regulate the entry and removal of noncitizens,” the 22-page DOJ complaint states.
Under SB 4, entering the US illegally from Mexico becomes a state crime, and police will have the authority to arrest individuals suspected of crossing the Rio Grande between ports of entry.
Migrants caught entering the country illegally face Class B misdemeanor charges that carry up to six months in prison. Repeat offenders will be charged with a second-degree felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison.
SB 4 allows Texas judges to drop charges against immigrants if they agree to be deported.
The law, part of the state’s Operation Lone Star initiative to crack down on illegal border crossings, was signed by Abbott on Dec. 18.
“But Texas cannot run its own immigration system,” the DOJ suit argued. “His efforts, through SB 4, encroach on the exclusive authority of the federal government to regulate the entry and removal of non-citizens, disrupt United States immigration operations and proceedings, and interfere with US foreign relations.”
The Biden administration has argued that the federal government has sole authority to enforce immigration laws. ZUMAPRESS.com “I like my chances,” Abbott said of the upcoming court battle over SB 4. AP
“SB 4 is invalid and must be enjoined,” the Justice Department demanded, arguing that SB 4 “is preempted by federal law and thus violates the Supremacy Clause of the United States Constitution.”
Abbott suggested Wednesday that he believes Texas will prevail in its latest court battle with President Biden’s Justice Department over its efforts to curb record levels of illegal immigration.
“Biden is suing me today because I signed a law that prohibits illegal immigrants from entering or attempting to enter Texas directly from a foreign country,” the Texas governor said in a post X. “I like my chances.”
“Texas is the only state in America that is trying to stop illegal immigration,” he added.
A new law allows Texas police to arrest immigrants caught entering the country illegally. AFP via Getty Images
A spokesman for Abbott told The Post last week that Texas is prepared to take legal action to enforce SB 4 to the Supreme Court, if necessary.
“Texas is prepared to continue this fight all the way to the US Supreme Court to protect Texans and Americans from President Biden’s open border policies,” Abbott representative Renae Eze said in a statement.
“Absent President Biden’s deliberate and dangerous actions on our southern border we have left Texas to fend for itself. Governor Abbott signed Senate Bill 4 into law last week to help stem the tide of illegal immigration into Texas as the President refuses to enforce federal immigration laws.”
The DOJ has also sued the state over the construction of a floating barrier on the Rio Grande, which the court ordered Abbott to remove, and has petitioned the Supreme Court to allow Border Patrol agents to clear about 30 miles of razor wire installed along the US-Mexico border with Texas is trying to prevent immigrants from crossing into the state.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
