Texas Patrols Its Own Border, Pushing Legal Limits
AUSTIN, Texas — Four C-130 military transport planes towered over the tarmac at Austin’s international airport, idling with the doors open as the sun rose over a news conference called by the Texas governor, Greg Abbott.
As Mr. Abbott began speaking on Monday from a lectern emblazoned with the words “Securing the Border,” about 200 soldiers from the National Guard hustled onto the planes.
“They will be deployed to hot spots along the border to intercept, to repel and to turn back migrants who are trying to enter Texas illegally,” the governor said, barely audible over the roar of the engines. Then he turned to watch the planes take off.
For two years, Texas has engaged in a multibillion-dollar attempt to arrest and deter migrants who cross into the state from Mexico, deploying helicopters and drones, National Guard troops patrolling the border in camouflage and state troopers racing down highways in black-and-white SUVs. The state has bused thousands of migrants to East Coast cities like New York and lined the reedy banks of the Rio Grande with concertina wire.
Source: The New York Times
