Austin, TX
Justice Department sues Texas over law that would let police arrest migrants who enter US illegally
By PAUL J. WEBER and ACACIA CORONADO (Associated Press)
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The Justice Department on Wednesday sued Texas over a new law that would allow police to arrest migrants who enter the U.S. illegally, taking Republican Gov. Greg Abbott to court again over his escalating response to border crossers arriving from Mexico.
The lawsuit draws Texas into another clash over immigration at a time when New York and Chicago are pushing back on buses and planes carrying migrants sent by Abbott to Democrat-led cities nationwide. Texas is also fighting separate court battles to keep razor wire on the border and a floating barrier in the Rio Grande.
But a law Abbott signed last month poses a broader and bigger challenge to the U.S. government’s authority over immigration. In addition to allowing police anywhere in Texas to arrest migrants on charges of illegal entry, the law — known as Senate Bill 4 — also gives judges the authority to order migrants to leave the country.
The lawsuit asks a federal court in Austin to declare the Texas law unconstitutional. It calls the measure a violation of the Supremacy Clause, which establishes that federal laws in most cases supersede state law.
“Texas cannot run its own immigration system,” the Justice Department states in the lawsuit. “Its efforts, through SB 4, intrude on the federal government’s exclusive authority to regulate the entry and removal of noncitizens, frustrate the United States’ immigration operations and proceedings, and interfere with U.S. foreign relations.”
Abbott’s office did not respond to an email seeking comment.
“Biden sued me today because I signed a law making it illegal for an illegal immigrant to enter or attempt to enter Texas directly from a foreign nation.” Abbott said in a post on X, formerly Twitter. “I like my chances.”
The law is scheduled to take effect in March. Civil rights organizations and officials in El Paso County, Texas, filed a lawsuit last month that similarly described the new law as unconstitutional overreach.
The Justice Department sent Abbott a letter last week threatening legal action unless Texas reversed course. In response, Abbott posted on X that the Biden administration “not only refuses to enforce current U.S. immigration laws, they now want to stop Texas from enforcing laws against illegal immigration.”
On Wednesday, House Speaker Mike Johnson and about 60 fellow Republicans visited the Texas border city of Eagle Pass, which has been the center of Abbott’s $10 billion border initiative known as Operation Lone Star. Johnson suggested he could use a looming government funding deadline as further leverage for hard-line border policies.
President Joe Biden has expressed willingness to make policy compromises because the number of migrants crossing the border is an increasing challenge for his 2024 reelection campaign. Johnson praised Abbott, who was not in Eagle Pass, and slammed the lawsuits that seek to undo Texas’ aggressive border measures.
“It’s absolute insanity,” Johnson said.
Illegal crossings along the southern U.S. border topped 10,000 on several days in December, a number that U.S. Customs and Border Patrol Commissioner Troy Miller called “unprecedented.” U.S. authorities closed cargo rail crossings in Eagle Pass and El Paso for five days last month, calling it a response to a large number of migrants riding freight trains through Mexico to the border.
Authorities this week also resumed full operations at a bridge in Eagle Pass and other crossings in San Diego and Arizona that had been temporarily closed.
Legal experts and opponents say Texas’ new law is the most far-reaching attempt by a state to police immigration since a 2010 Arizona law that was partially struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court. That law had made it a state crime to be in the U.S. without legal status and gave police some immigration enforcement powers. A Supreme Court ruling in 2012 affirmed that immigration enforcement is solely within the authority of the federal government.
Under the Texas law, migrants could either agree to a Texas judge’s order to leave the U.S. or be prosecuted on misdemeanor charges of illegal entry. Migrants who don’t leave could face arrest again under more serious felony charges.
Those ordered to leave would be sent to ports of entry along the border with Mexico, even if they are not Mexican citizens. The law can be enforced anywhere in Texas but some places are off-limits, including schools and churches.
For more than two years, Texas has run a smaller-scale operation on the border to arrest migrants on misdemeanor charges of trespassing. Although that was also intended to stem illegal crossings, there is little indication that it has done so.
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Associated Press reporter Jake Bleiberg in Dallas contributed to this report.
Austin, TX
Is Matthew McConaughey Running For Governor? Why Campaign Signs Have Been Spotted In Austin, Texas | Whiskey Riff
Is Matthew McConaughey finally throwing his name into the hat of politics?
The Oscar-winning actor and author has been teasing a political run for years. Back in 2024, McConaughey really seemed to be entertaining a run for the governor of Texas. During the election year, the man known for such hit films as Interstellar and Dazed and Confused was asked about his interest again and again.
When he spoke with Forbes about the matter, he didn’t immediately shut the idea down. Rather, he thinks it’s something that he could enter into after he learns more about it:
“Yes. I have thought about running for office, getting into this category. I’m on a learning tour and have been for probably the last six years of understanding what this category means. Do I have instincts, intellect that it would be a good fit for me and I would be a good fit for it. That would be useful. I’m still on that learning tour, and, you know, days like this. I’m learning a lot.”
So considering the fact that “McConaughey for Governor” campaign signs have been spotted in Texas recently, could his learning tour be over?
Lone Star State residents have been freaking out as signage for a Matthew McConaughey political run have popped up in North Texas. People have even reported seeing billboards and yard signs teasing the actor’s transition into politics. In addition, social media users have seen (and videoed) various campaign set ups, and even a large stage installation, on various occasions. As you might imagine, those have gone viral on social media.
Here’s a video of the aforementioned stage installation, which features Texas flags all over the place and “McConaughey for Governor” signs that have a tagline that harkens back to one of his most famous movie roles:
“Be Pretty Cool if You Voted.”
But here’s the deal… Matthew McConaughey is not running for governor of Texas, even though Texans would be alright, alright, alright with him doing so.
As the caption included in FOX4’s post describes, the sightings of “McConaughey for governor” signs are actually for an upcoming Apple TV+ show that will feature Matthew playing a fictionalized version of himself:
“These highly realistic visuals are merely props for ‘Brothers,’ an upcoming Apple TV+ comedy series where McConaughey plays a fictionalized version of himself running for political office alongside his close friend, actor Woody Harrelson.”
So to be clear, anything and everything that Texas residents have seen about a potential McConaughey gubernatorial run are actually just realistic (and based on the internet’s response, confusing) set pieces. You can’t blame people for thinking that it might have been real with the Oscar winner publicly showing interest in running for governor in 2022, and teasing political runs in the years since.
While knowing that he isn’t running for office might be a let down, it’s fun to hear that he and Woody Harrelson will be working on a show together that will soon find a home on Apple TV+. And hey, this all might be for a TV series… but maybe they are also doing all of this to gauge how the public would respond to McConaughey running?
Sorry, I’ll take my tinfoil hat off…
Austin, TX
Texas Longhorn fans prepare to travel for showdown in Georgia
AUSTIN, Texas — Texas fans will make the stampede across the southeastern portion of the United States to Athens, Georgia, as the No. 10 Longhorns clash with the No. 5 Georgia Bulldogs this upcoming Saturday.
Charlie Dunn, a dedicated Texas Longhorns fan and alumnus, is continuing a cherished tradition of attending road games with his father. “I tell people that I was brainwashed as a young child to go there,” Dunn said. This weekend, the father-son duo will travel to Athens to take in Saturday’s contest inside Sanford Stadium. “For the first time, we get to go, like, to their stadium, which I think is going to be awesome to see,” Dunn added.
They will be joined by thousands of fellow Longhorn fans, including 60 members of the Texas Exes organization. Margaret Williams, travel director for Texas Exes, expressed excitement about the new travel opportunities in the SEC. “It’s really fun now that we’re in the SEC because obviously there’s a lot of new sort of like, you know, travel destinations that we’ve never gone to before,” she said.
The Texas Exes Atlanta Chapter is preparing to welcome alumni and fans with open arms. “They’ll definitely have some warm Texas Longhorn arms to land in regardless of whether they’re in Athens or if they’re in Atlanta,” said Hunter Miranda, fundraising chair for the chapter.
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The group is holding a welcome party and happy hour on Friday at Botica, beginning at 6 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.
“For those of us living in Atlanta as Texas fans, we’ve been waiting for the Longhorns to be a part of the SEC,” said chapter vice president Ryan Esparza.
For those unable to attend the game, a watch party is planned. “A really large crew who maybe weren’t able to get tickets are going to be joining the watch party,” said Esparza, with Miranda mentioning that door prizes will be given out.
Despite the competitive atmosphere, Texas fans remain confident. “We’ve got a lot of Bulldogs around us, and they like to have their voices be heard when they’re better than us. So I would like to very much be able to quiet them,” Esparza said. Williams added, “I mostly wanna say Hook ’em Horns, let’s go get ’em.”
Anyone interested in attending any of the events held by the Atlanta chapter of the Texas Exes is encouraged to contact the chapter.
Austin, TX
Woman dies after vehicle veers off road, hits her at East Austin bus stop
AUSTIN, Texas — A woman sitting at a bus stop in East Austin has died after being struck by a vehicle that veered off the road Wednesday night.
The Austin Police Department reported that the incident occurred on Riverside Drive, where the vehicle left the roadway, hitting the victim.
She was transported to the hospital by Austin-Travis County EMS, where she succumbed to her injuries and was pronounced dead.
ALSO|
All eastbound lanes of East Riverside Drive between Royal Crest and Burton Dr are closed.
The scene remains active as the investigation continues.
Motorists are advised to avoid the area and seek alternate routes.
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