The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday sided with the Biden administration in a case involving a razor wire fence along Texas’ border with Mexico.
The court’s decision allows Border Patrol agents to cut concertina wire that Texas had installed along the border near Eagle Pass while litigation continues.
The roughly 30 miles of wire had been installed as part of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s broader fight with the administration over immigration enforcement and attempts to stem the historic flow of migrants across the border since Biden’s term began.
In court papers, the Biden administration argued that the wire impedes Border Patrol agents from reaching migrants as they cross the river and that, in any case, federal immigration laws trumps Texas’ own efforts to stem the flow of migrants into the country.
In a 5-4 vote Monday, the justices granted an emergency appeal from the Biden administration, which has been in an escalating standoff at the border with Texas and had objected to an appellate ruling in favor of the state.
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The deciding vote was cast by Justice Roberts, while Justices Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, and Kavanaugh were in the dissent. Justice Amy Coney Barrett, a Trump appointee, also sided with the majority.
No justice provided an explanation for their vote.
Most of the razor wire is deployed in the Shelby Park area of Eagle Pass. It is owned by the city but was recently seized by the State of Texas. Federal Border Patrol agents have been blocked from the park since then, a move the Border Patrol Union publicly supports.
The litigation is one of several legal challenges in federal court by the Biden administration over Texas’ border enforcement policies, including floating barriers in the Rio Grande as well as trespassing arrests and incarceration of illegal immigrants by the state.. Those cases have yet to reach the Supreme Court.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
