A federal court halted Texas' Operation Lone Star's Rio Grande buoy barrier initiative, citing violations of the Rivers and Harbors Act. Gov. Greg Abbott criticized the ruling, hinting at a potential Supreme Court battle.
“Texas will appeal. Today’s court decision merely prolongs President Biden’s willful refusal to acknowledge that Texas is rightfully stepping up to do the job that he should have been doing all along. This ruling is incorrect and will be overturned on appeal,” Gov. Abbott said in a Sept. 6 press release. “We will continue to utilize every strategy to secure the border, including deploying Texas National Guard soldiers and Department of Public Safety troopers and installing strategic barriers. Our battle to defend Texas’ sovereign authority to protect lives from the chaos caused by President Biden’s open border policies has only begun. Texas is prepared to take this fight all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.”
In a decisive ruling on Sept. 6, the federal court granted the United States' motion for a preliminary injunction, hampering the efforts of Operation Lone Star, a collaborative initiative involving Gov. Abbott, the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS), and the Texas National Guard to curb transnational crimes and strengthen border security, according to court documents.
"This fight ain't over. It's only just begun," Gov. Abbot wrote in a Sept. 6 social media post on X, formerly Twitter, shortly after the ruling.
According to a press release, the case arose following Texas' endeavor to install a floating buoy barrier in the Rio Grande, a measure aimed at halting the smuggling of drugs, weapons, and people into Texas. This strategic move, however, was met with a backlash as the Justice Department filed a complaint against the State of Texas on July 24, citing violations of the Rivers and Harbors Act (RHA) of 1899, which regulates the obstruction of navigable waters in the United States.
In the press release, Gov. Abbott noted that the president was neglecting his job and said that Texas was just "rightfully stepping up" to do its job.
According to court documents, Texas's construction of the floating barrier breached two protocols stipulated in Section 10 of the RHA, which primarily prohibits any unauthorized obstructions to the navigable capacity of U.S. waters and restricts the construction of structures like piers and jetties outside established harbor lines without requisite approval from relevant authorities.
Despite the setback, Gov. Abbott reiterated Texas' commitment to safeguard its borders by employing "every strategy," including the deployment of the Texas National Guard and DPS troopers and the installation of strategic barriers to halt criminal activities fostered by what he termed "President Biden's open border policies."
According to court documents shared by Fox News, a Stay Order was granted by the Western District of Texas, Austin Division, dated Sept. 6.
