Texas argues shallow river makes buoys legal

AUSTIN, Texas  — Texas is pushing back against the U.S. Justice Department’s efforts to remove its 1,000-foot buoy barrier from the Rio Grande.

The state argues the federal government only has jurisdiction over navigable rivers and the spot near Eagle Pass is not because it’s too shallow. The latest filing also acknowledged for the first time that the barrier includes a 2-foot “anti-dive net” that hangs below the buoys. 

Gov. Greg Abbott says the buoys are needed to deter illegal immigration, but critics call them barbaric and inhumane.

Thursday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken held a news conference with the Mexican Foreign Secretary Alicia Bárcena Ibarra as tensions between Mexico and Texas over the buoys grow.

“Our interpretation, our demand is that these buoys be removed,” Bárcena Ibarra said. 

One international affairs expert said the fight over the buoys is creating a rift in important international relations.

“I think this is creating a crisis at our border that’s not just about immigrants, it’s now a crisis about two countries: the United State and Mexico,” said Jeremi Suri, the Mack Brown Distinguished Chair for Leadership in Global Affairs at The University of Texas at Austin. “It’s one of the most important trading partnerships in the world. It is not in the interest in Texas or in the interest of Mexico for us to have difficulties in our governments.”

Meanwhile, a group of Texas congressional Republicans is once again urging their colleagues to defund the Department of Homeland Security over the border.

In a letter led by Austin-area Congressman Chip Roy, the delegation put it simply, saying “no border security, no funding.” They’re also asking the federal government to reimburse Texas the $10 billion the state will have spent in the next two years on Gov. Abbott’s Operation Lone Star.

Click the video link above to watch our full interview with Professor Suri.