Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is digging in his heels, sending a response to the Supreme Court to oppose the Biden Administration's desire to tear down border barriers in Texas. In a legal tug-of-war over border control, Paxton is staunchly defending the State of Texas use of concertina wire fencing to stem illegal crossings.
Last year, the Biden administration moved to dismantle the barbed barriers, sparking off a legal battle. Paxton won a temporary restraining order from a federal judge in October, subsequently upheld by the Fifth Circuit, which stopped federal agents in their tracks. According to the Texas Attorney General's Office, the Administration's actions were "likely unlawful."
The story took a twist when the Biden Administration sought an end-run around the appeals process, asking the Supreme Court to immediately let federal agents get back to wire-cutting. Paxton hit back, arguing that the Fifth Circuit has put the case on the fast track and that the feds shouldn't get to change their legal strategy mid-game.
Defending state property, Paxton claimed, "Defendants seek emergency relief pending appeal without making any argument that they did not destroy Texas’s property," His filing stated that this "maximalist view of federal authority" had been rejected at every turn. As reported by the Texas Attorney General's Office, he drew attention to district court findings that flatly contradicted the Administration's border enforcement success claims.
