Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
The debate on whether President Joe Biden should seize control of the Texas National Guard in order to force it to comply with a recent Supreme Court ruling is continuing to rage between Democrats and Republicans.
Texas Representative Joaquin Castro and former congressman and 2020 presidential hopeful Beto O’Rourke, both Democrats, are among those who are urging Biden to federalize the state’s National Guard to allow Border Patrol agents to remove razor wire put up along the U.S.-Mexico border by Texas law enforcement in order to prevent illegal immigration.
In a 5-4 ruling on January 22, the Supreme Court sided with the Biden administration, which said that the wire erected in Eagle Pass was put up illegally and prevented Border Patrol from trying to detain people who were attempting to cross the border via the Rio Grande.
Despite the ruling, Texas Governor Greg Abbott argued that Biden is failing his duties as president by not controlling the record levels of illegal crossings at the southern border during his time in office. Abbott has also declared that Texas is currently under an “invasion” and invoked the state’s constitutional right to defend and protect itself.
“That authority is the supreme law of the land and supersedes any federal statutes to the contrary. The Texas National Guard, the Texas Department of Public Safety, and other Texas personnel are acting on that authority, as well as state law, to secure the Texas border,” Abbott said.
As a result, Abbott is allowing the Texas National Guard to continue to install the razor wire along the border. He is refusing to allow Border Patrol agents access to Shelby Park—a riverfront park in Eagle Pass that migrants are using to enter the U.S. illegally—in order to remove the wires.
Newsweek reached out to the White House and Abbott via email for comment.
Biden is within his power to federalize the Texas National Guard in accordance with Title 10 of the U.S. Code, which would mean the state’s troops would be under direct orders of the president.
In 1957, President Dwight D. Eisenhower placed the Arkansas National Guard under federal authority and ordered them to protect nine Black students who enrolled at Central High School in Little Rock. The move arrived after the state’s governor, Orval Faubus, previously called the troops to prevent the Black students’ entry into the all-white school, despite a Supreme Court ruling that declared segregation in public schools unconstitutional.
Currently, Texas National Guard troops are operating under Title 32, which means they fall under the command of the Texas governor as their commander-in-chief.
“Abbott is using the Texas Guard to defy a Supreme Court ruling. When Gov. Faubus did this in 1957, Eisenhower federalized the Arkansas Guard to ensure compliance with the law,” O’Rourke posted on X, formerly Twitter. “Biden must follow this example of bold, decisive leadership to end this crisis before it gets worse.”
However, questions have been raised as to whether Biden can federalize the Texas National Guard in these current circumstances, with some suggesting the president does not have the legal justification to do so.
“Title 10 can only supersede Title 32 in a national emergency. In this case, Biden would have to activate the Texas National Guard to guard the border. Otherwise it is an unlawful order,” retired Air Force General Robert Spalding posted on X.
Presumably, a move to federalize the Texas National Guard would mean the Border Patrol would quickly move in and remove the razor wire, which has been the focus of the arguments in the Lone Star state.
Others have suggested such a move could have broader implications for Biden, as well as setting up possible further legal challenges and issues.
“If the Texas National Guard are federalized under Title 10 for the sole purpose of pulling them off the Texas border and out of the chain of command of the Commander in Chief of the Texas military after Gov. Abbott invoked his constitutional authority to defend the Texas border, the founders would have envisioned this as a crime and misdemeanor and impeachable offense,” Jonathan Hullihan, a constitutional law and national security law expert, told The Center Square.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton also suggested that the Democrats calling for Biden to federalize the National Guard “don’t understand the law” and the president must first declare a national emergency.
“That goes to the whole question, why is he declaring an emergency? Obviously, we have one, right? And now he’s admitting it,” Paxton told Newsmax. “I think that becomes a political issue for him, it becomes a real problem for him politically.”
Beyond continuing to defy the Biden Administration and ordering law enforcement to still erect razor wire, Abbott has also indicated that he is willing to appeal any decision from the president to the Supreme Court.
Professor Peter Shane, a law lecturer at New York University and constitutional law expert, dismissed Abbott’s suggestion that he can have supreme authority in Texas after declaring that the state is under “invasion” from people crossing the border illegally.
“This is nonsense. Governors have no power to declare anything under the U.S. Constitution, nor does the Constitution give states any legal power to countermand the exercise of federal authority,” Shane previously told Newsweek.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning is set to begin the 2024 college football season as the backup to Quinn Ewers. More than likely, fans will have to wait until next season to see him in action.
Despite being a backup quarterback, Manning is one of the most popular names across the nation.
A lot of his popularity comes from him being the nephew of former NFL superstars Peyton and Eli Manning. However, he has also shown massive potential for the future.
Many fans are curious about just how much the young Manning works with his uncles. Peyton Manning, especially, is viewed as one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play football.
In a recent quote during the Manning Pass Academy, Peyton opened up about his relationship with Arch.
“I’m well-documented on how proud we are of Arch. I try to be a resource to him. He and I worked out several weeks ago together.”
Clearly, Peyton has been a key mentor for the young quarterback. While he has been a mentor and a resource, he doesn’t seem to be taking a very active role in Arch’s development.
At this point in time, no one knows exactly what to expect from Manning’s future. Until he’s on the field and playing, no one knows if he will live up to the hype.
Even though he hasn’t played much as a college football player, he has found plenty of success.
His success has come off-the-field, in the form of the NIL market.
Right now, Manning ranks No. 3 among all NIL athletes. The only two athletes ahead of him are Shedeur Sanders and Livvy Dunne.
Currently, the young quarterback has received an NIL valuation of $2.8 million. That is an insane number for a player who has only thrown five passes as a college quarterback.
All of that being said, Manning is staying ready for an opportunity to play. He knows it likely won’t be this season, but he’s one injury or a slow start from Quinn Ewers away from possibly seeing playing time.
Expect to see the young quarterback continue racking up impressive NIL money. He has stayed the course and has handled his situation perfectly. A bright future awaits him with the Longhorns when his number is finally called.
SCHOOL: Texas
HEAD COACH: Steve Sarkisian (25-14, 4th year)
2023 RECORD: 12-1 overall, 8-1 (1st in Big 12)
RETURNING STARTERS: Offense – 5; Defense – 7, Special Teams – 1
PLAYERS TO WATCH: QB Quinn Ewers, RB Jaydon Blue, WR Silas Bolden, WR Isaiah Bond, LT Kelvin Banks Jr., Edge Ethan Burke, LB Anthony Hill, S Andrew Mukuba
VERSUS GEORGIA: October 19 (Darrell K. Royal Texas Memorial Stadium)
Last year’s Longhorn offense averaged 36 points. Can Texas keep that up in its first season in the SEC?
The fact quarterback Quinn Ewers is back after a year that saw him complete 69 percent of his passes for 3,479 yards and 22 touchdowns bodes well.
So does the fact Texas returns four of its starting offensive linemen.
The team has to replace Jonathan Brooks – the first running back taken in last April’s NFL Draft – but features some excellent returnees in CJ Baxter and Jaydon Blue, who combined for 1,057 yards last season.
There are some questions at wide receiver, but only because so many are new to the program.
Otherwise, Alabama transfer Isaiah Bond, Houston transfer Matthew Golden, and Oregon State transfer Silas Bolden accounted for 140 receptions for 1,818 yards and 15 touchdowns combined for their former teams.
Gone are defensive tackle Byron Murphy II and T’Vondre Sweat, selected in the first and second rounds of the NFL Draft.
As they did at wide receiver, the Longhorns dipped into the transfer portal to hopefully fill the voids, adding former Georgia player (Bill Norton via Arizona), Tia Savea (Arizona), and Louisville flip Jermayne Lole.
The Longhorns also hope fifth-year player Alfred Collins will be able to make a jump, and if he can, then the unit may be able to do the job.
Still, it might be a bit unfair to expect the same production as Sweat and Murphy provided a season ago.
A Week Two trip to defending national champion Michigan will give the Longhorns an excellent early test before hosting Mississippi State in its first game as an SEC member on Sept. 28.
The two weeks that follow, however, will tell the tale.
Texas and fellow SEC newcomer Oklahoma in Dallas on Oct. 12, followed on the 19th by the highly-anticipated game with Georgia.
If the Longhorns can survive that, the rest of the conference schedule is certainly manageable.
Home games against Florida and Kentucky highlight the remaining part of the conference schedule, before closing at arch-rival Texas A&M on Nov. 30.
BALTIMORE — A philosophical question: If a closer doesn’t hit 100 mph, can he still get noticed? You know, kind of like a tree falling in the woods. If nobody sees it, did it actually happen?
We may get an answer to that question in the next week when All-Star rosters are revealed. Rangers closer Kirby Yates has seemingly done everything necessary to make the AL All-Star team, other than light up a radar gun.
As players wrap up their voting for the All-Star pitching staffs this weekend, choosing three relievers, it’s hard to make a convincing case against Yates reaching the medal stand. Unless, of course, you factor in his fastball. It doesn’t light up Statcast metrics. It’s only good for getting him ahead in counts and setting up his devastating forkball. Among qualified relievers, Yates’ 93.1 mph average fastball ranks only 60th in the AL. The guys getting all the national buzz are Oakland’s Mason Miller and his 100.8 mph fastball and AL saves leader Emmanuel Clase with his 99.8 mph heater.
“I know I don’t have a fastball that lights up the radar guns,” Yates said. “But the league is filled with stuff and guys who are throwers. Guys who pitch are the outliers. But if you pitch and execute your pitches, you can be successful. I don’t think that will ever go away.”
He has pitched exceptionally well. There is not a performance-based stat in which he is weak. He began Saturday perfect in his 11 save chances this year, the only AL reliever with at least 10 opportunities and no blown saves. His ERA (0.99) was second. His batting average allowed (.134) was second. He had a WHIP below 1.00 (0.95).
Put this another way. He is the only pitcher in baseball — regardless of league — to begin the statistical second-half of the season perfect on at least 10 save chances, with a WHIP and ERA both below 1.00. There is more. He’s averaging 12.07 strikeouts per nine innings thanks to a filthy splitter and hasn’t allowed a homer.
The closest comp to Yates from a year ago was Minnesota’s Jhoan Duran, who ended June with 11 saves in 13 chances, a 1.91 ERA and a 0.94 ERA. Perhaps, it’s not best to bring this up. Duran still didn’t make the All-Star team. There were six relievers either selected or named as replacements. It included each of the top five in saves and Baltimore’s Yennier Cano, who had a 1.14 ERA and 0.86 WHIP entering July. Moral of the story: Yates’ relatively low number of saves may work against him.
If other players rely on a singular number such as saves or WAR, Yates may get overlooked. He is tied for 11th in the AL in saves and is eighth in WAR among AL relievers at 1.0, though only three-tenths of a win separates him from the No. 2 spot, which belongs to Clase.
On the other hand, if AL manager Bruce Bochy has any input, Yates will get a firm endorsement. That doesn’t carry the weight it once did. Once upon a time, the manager had a big hand in selecting the pitching staff. Now, it’s almost entirely reliant on peer votes. Bochy said this week that he would heartily endorse Yates as a reliever.
So, too, will David Robertson, the AL’s senior reliever at age 39. Robertson was an All-Star in 2010 as a setup man with the New York Yankees.
“His case is great,” said Robertson, who has a pretty solid case of his own. “His WHIP is good. His strikeouts are high. If you aren’t giving up walks and hits and you are striking out guys, what else are you supposed to do? I hope he goes.”
Yates admits it, he’d like to. He’s been an All-Star before and was even named the NL’s closer in 2019. Only problem: NL didn’t have a lead. He didn’t pitch. Since then: He missed most of three seasons with elbow issues and eventually surgery.
“I think making the team would validate a lot of things,” Yates said. “I’d love a chance to pitch, but the fact that I was named the closer that year was a real sign of respect and I appreciated that. In a perfect world, you’d get a chance to do both.”
And if everybody sees it, well, then it definitely happened.
Twitter: @Evan_P_Grant
Find more Rangers coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
Click or tap here to sign up for our Rangers newsletter.
Tracking a Single Day at the National Domestic Violence Hotline
Israel accepts bilateral meeting with EU, but with conditions
Is Israel’s Smotrich fulfilling his dream of annexing the West Bank?
Supreme Court upholds law barring domestic abusers from owning guns in major Second Amendment ruling | CNN Politics
Supreme Court upholds federal gun ban for those under domestic violence restraining orders
Trump classified docs judge to weigh alleged 'unlawful' appointment of Special Counsel Jack Smith
New Caledonia independence activists sent to France for detention
A Florida family is suing NASA after a piece of space debris crashed through their home