Federal judge hears arguments over Texas’ floating barrier on Rio Grande

Geoff Bennett:

The battle over floating barriers on the Rio Grande reached the courtroom today. A federal judge in Austin heard arguments from the state of Texas and the U.S. Justice Department over Republican Governor Greg Abbott's use of giant buoys to deter migrants crossing the river.

The Justice Department sued the state, saying the barrier violates federal law and must be removed.

Following the latest is our own Laura Barrón-López.

So, Laura, what arguments did the judge hear in the courtroom today?

Laura Barrón-López:

The central argument from the Justice Department was that this violates a federal law that governs the Rio Grande, and specifically the Rivers and Harbors act of 1899.

Now, I spoke to a Haya Panjwani. She's a local reporter from Austin's NPR station, and she was in the courtroom today. And she said that Governor Greg Abbott deployed a number of justifications to the judge for why they implemented these barriers.

Haya Panjwani, KUT Radio:

Abbott's defense team said that they were acting out of security concerns, and they would repeatedly cite human smuggling cartel activity, illegal immigration along the border. But the judge repeatedly struck that down and said, today, we're here to talk about water and how it relates to the U.S.-Mexico border.

Laura Barrón-López:

So, Haya Panjwani said that David Ezra, who's overseeing the case, that Abbott's team did not actually get — cite a specific statute when they were making this defense, that they simply said that they have the right to defend their border.

And the judge said, no, this is about international water law and about the territory and the fact that this potentially infringed on Mexican sovereignty. Now, what comes next is that the judge asked the Justice Department and Texas defense to submit their closing arguments. And he plans to make a determination shortly after those closing arguments, which are expected on Friday.

Geoff Bennett:

And, as I understand it, the Justice Department confronted Governor Abbott on multiple fronts today, so break down the government's case for us.

Laura Barrón-López:

So, essentially, the Justice Department said today that Abbott did not have permanent approval from the Army Corps of Engineers, which oversees this, that he never got approval to place these floating buoys in the Rio Grande, which stretch about 1,000 feet or so next to Eagle Pass, which is that border community, and that, also, they said in the court today that the this action by Abbott is harming U.S.-Mexico relations.

And they also said in court briefings filed prior to the hearing today that this language used by Abbott around invasion is not accurate. It's something that he doesn't have the right to determine whether or not there is an invasion occurring to Texas, that that is a federal right.

Now, ahead of the hearing today, local advocates, as well as border residents, came to speak out against Operation Lone Star tactics that the governor has deployed.

Karen Gonzalez from The Border Organization of Del Rio, Texas, took issue with exactly what Abbott is doing.

Karen Gonzalez, The Border Organization:

Dehydrated individuals denied water in extreme heat, small children being pushed back into the river, razor wire along the Rio Grande injuring and forcing immigrants into deeper water, increasing the risk of drownings, and, worst of all, a pregnant woman stuck in wire having a miscarriage.

Laura Barrón-López:

Karen Gonzalez captured when a number of residents have been saying, which is that, while they may have supported Governor Abbott's Operation Lone Star at first when it was deployed about two years ago, they aren't supportive of it any longer.

Geoff Bennett:

Well, the governor is undeterred. I mean, he makes the point that he has the authority and the responsibility to protect the border. And he's not moving away from this Operation Lone Star program.

What's his argument?

Laura Barrón-López:

That's right.

Governor Abbott has doubled down, essentially, in defending this entire operation. Just recently, another part of Operation Lone Star is the busing of migrants to Democratic-led cities. He did that recently as — to Los Angeles in California, as the Hilary storm was actually approaching Los Angeles.

And, over the weekend, Abbott was joined by four other Republican governors from non-border states and again defended his actions.

Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX):

The border between the United States and Mexico is turning into a deadly welcome mat for the migrants who are coming here.

As an example, just last year alone, there was an all-time record number of people who died crossing the border. Joe Biden is responsible for that deadly border.

Laura Barrón-López:

Now, according to the Department of Homeland Security, in 2022, there were a record number of migrant deaths when they crossed the border. Those were attributed to drownings. They were also attributed to extreme heat, which migrants suffer from.

And when Governor Abbott first deployed Operation Lone Star, he was asked if it was going to include any type of resources that would potentially help migrants deal with those conditions. And he said that he was concerned with Texans.

Geoff Bennett:

The number of illegal boarding — border crossings, it's down across the board anyway, isn't it?

Laura Barrón-López:

It is overall down, so compared to last year at the same time.

June had a record drop in border crossings and apprehensions. They were at their lowest in the last two years. But just this last month, in July, Homeland Security released new numbers recently, and they increased by about 30 percent the border apprehensions.

Now, within that, we should also note that there were more migrants process because they're seeking asylum through the Biden administration's new parole app, which they are trying to make possible where migrants can seek asylum while they're in their country of origin. But, again, overall compared to last year, border crossings are down.

Geoff Bennett:

Laura Barrón-López, thank you for that reporting. We appreciate it.

Laura Barrón-López:

Thank you.