Southwest
Over 40 lawmakers sign brief to support Texas in immigration fight with Biden administration
FIRST ON FOX: A group of over 40 lawmakers signed on to an Amicus brief supporting the state of Texas in its legal battle with the Biden administration after the Justice Department sued the state earlier this year over a law that would allow Texas police the ability to arrest illegal migrants.
“I am proud to lead 45 of my colleagues in an Amicus Brief supporting Texas’ Article 1 Section 10 to stop the chaos, secure the border, and protect Texans — not only is the Constitution on our side, but the American people are on our side as well,” Rep. Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, the leader of the effort, told Fox News Digital.
Arrington’s comments come as Texas will go to court to defend a state law signed by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott in December that allows Texas law enforcement officers the ability to arrest and charge illegal migrants, which the Justice Department argues falls under federal authority.
“The United States brings this action to preserve its exclusive authority under federal law to regulate the entry and removal of noncitizens,” the lawsuit, which was filed in an Austin federal court, states. “Texas cannot run its own immigration system. “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.”
JUSTICE DEPARTMENT SUES TEXAS OVER LAW TO LET POLICE ARREST ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS
Left: President Biden. Right: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images | USA TODAY NETWORK via Reuters Connect)
But Arrington argues that the law is not only constitutional, but was made necessary by the Biden administration’s lack of ability to contain the crisis plaguing the U.S. border with Mexico.
“It is clear to any honest and objective person living in this country that President Biden has willfully disregarded the laws of the land, abdicated his constitutional duty to provide for a common defense, and unilaterally surrendered control of our border to terrorist drug cartels,” Arrington said. “Not only has President Biden failed to enforce our laws and secure our border – he has aggressively obstructed Texas’ efforts to do the job of the federal government, including the DOJ lawsuit over SB4.”
The brief, which was filed in the U.S. district court for the western district of Texas—Austin Division Tuesday evening and reviewed by Fox News Digital, accused the federal government of an “abdication of its duty to protect States from invasion and to take care that the nation’s immigration laws are faithfully executed.”
The brief also accuses the Biden administration of “purposefully” facilitating the “mass illegal entries” of migrants into the U.S., making it necessary for Texas to “secure its borders and repel the invasion of criminal drug cartels and the flood of illegal aliens from around the world.”
Rep. August Pfluger, R-Texas., one of the lawmakers to sign on to the brief, told Fox News Digital that the Biden administration “has proven that they are unwilling to protect Texans from the life-and-death consequences of mass illegal migration.”
An inflatable barrier along the Rio Grande River in Eagle Pass to deter illegal immigrants from crossing into the U.S. (Texas DPS)
JOHNSON CALLS MIGRANT CRISIS ‘TRULY UNCONSCIONABLE’ DURING VISIT TO BESIEGED SOUTHERN BORDER
“Instead of suing the State of Texas for doing the federal government’s job, the President should be focused on protecting the safety of American citizens,” Pfluger said.
The Texas law gives migrants who have been arrested the opportunity to follow a judge’s order to leave the U.S. or be charged with a misdemeanor for illegal entry. Migrants who choose not to leave can face felony charges if arrested again.
The law can be enforced anywhere in the state of Texas, though some places such as schools and churches are off-limits.
The legal battle comes at the same time Texas is involved in another legal battle over the installation of razor wire near the border, a barrier that also angered Mexican officials.
But those measures are part of the state’s right to “defend itself,” Rep. Michael Burgess, R-Texas, told Fox News Digital.
HOUSE HOMELAND SECURITY COMMITTEE SETS FIRST MAYORKAS IMPEACHMENT HEARING
“Texas has the constitutional right to defend itself. There is an outright invasion going on at our southern border and Secretary Mayorkas and the Biden Administration refuse to act,” Burgess said. “I will continue to support Texas’ actions of self-defense which are necessary only because of the Biden Administration’s gross negligence. I am thankful to Rep. Arrington for leading this much needed amicus brief in support of our state.”
Texas Army National Guard members walks by the border. (Texas Military Department )
Arrington, Pfluger, and Burgess were joined by several Republican colleagues in supporting the brief, including Reps. Jeff Duncan, R-S.C., Mike Collins, R-Ga., Doug LaMalfa, R-Calif., Mike Rogers, R-Ala., Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., Keith Self, R-Texas, Marjorie Taylor Green, R-Ga., Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., Carol Miller, R-WVa., Jim Banks, R-Ind., Erin Houchin, R-Ind., Ryan Zinke, R-Mont., Troy Nehls, R-Texas., Cliff Bentz, R-Ore., Clay Higgins, R-La., Ronny Jackson, R- Texas, Brian Babin, R-Texas, Mary Miller, R-Ill., Brandon Williams, R-N.Y., Pete Sessions, R-Texas, Chip Roy, R-Texas, Michael Cloud, R-La., Judge Carter, R-Texas, Lance Gooden, R-Texas, Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., Randy Weber, R-Texas, Morgan Luttrell, R-Texas, Kat Cammack, R-Colo., Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, Jake Ellzey, R-Texas, Ralph Norma, R-S.C., Beth Van Duyne, R-N.Y., Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, David Rouzer, R-N.C., Pat Fallon, R-Mass., Monica De La Cruz, R-Texas, Roger Williams, R-Texas, Michael McCaul, R-Texas, Nathaniel Moran, R-Texas, Kay Granger, R-Texas, and Andrew Clyde, R-Ga.
According to Clyde, Texas law is an example of the state exercising its right to defend itself.
“Under President Biden’s open border policies, every state is a border state. Yet under the Constitution, every state has the power to fend off the Biden Administration’s intentional illegal invasion,” Clyde told Fox News Digital. “I’m proud to join Chairman Arrington’s critical amicus brief in support of Texas’ right to exercise its Article I, Section 10 authorities, and I applaud Governor Abbott for holding the line against President Biden’s self-inflicted border crisis.”
The White House and Justice Department did not immediately respond to a Fox News Digital request for comment.
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A man armed with a knife was shot by L.A. police officers responding to an assault with a deadly weapon call overnight, authorities said.
According to the Los Angeles Police Department, officers with the Hollenbeck Division responded to an apartment complex in the 3000 block of Glenn Avenue in Boyle Heights at 1:45 a.m. Saturday after callers reported a male suspect was armed with a knife and had just assaulted someone in the complex.
Arriving officers found the suspect in front of the residence, but he did not comply with officers’ commands to drop the weapon. He then advanced toward the officers and an officer-involved shooting occurred, LAPD confirmed.
“The suspect was struck by gunfire and remained non-compliant,” the LAPD Public Information Officer said on X early Saturday morning. “Officers deployed a 40mm foam round and ultimately took the suspect into custody.”
Video obtained by KTLA shows the man being loaded into an ambulance and taken to a hospital; officials said he was transported in stable condition, adding that his knife was recovered at the scene and booked as evidence.
No officers or community members were injured during the incident. The man’s name was not released.
Dangerous rip currents and high surf are forecast for Los Angeles County beaches, including the Malibu Coast this weekend.
The National Weather Service has issued a hazardous beach statement, warning of the potentially deadly beach conditions. The dangerous conditions are forecast to last from Saturday evening to Monday morning.
“There is an increased risk of ocean drowning,” the NWS forecast reads. “Rip currents can pull swimmers and surfers out to sea. Waves can wash people off beaches and rocks, and capsize small boats nearshore.”
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A guide to surviving rip currents from the National Weather Service (NWS)
Minor Beach erosion and coastal flooding is possible through the weekend. The flooding is most likely to occur during evening high tides from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m.
Beachgoers are advised to stay out of the water and remain near lifeguard towers. Jetties and tidepools are also especially dangerous during the weekend forecast.
“Rock jetties can be deadly in such conditions, stay off the rocks,” the NWS forecast reads.
Similar hazardous beach conditions are also in the forecast for Santa Barbara County. A high surf advisory is also in effect for Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties this weekend, where 10 to 15-foot waves will be possible.
If you live or want to live in Los Angeles, the city controller has released a new dashboard highlighting some of the city’s most notorious problem rental properties, a tool designed to help renters avoid future headaches.
“This project comes at a time when tenants are reporting harassment and illegal evictions violating the City’s Rent Stabilization Ordinance, Just Cause for Eviction Ordinance and Tenant Anti‑Harassment Ordinance, but very few of the complaints end up leading to strong enforcement or real accountability,” L.A. City Controller Kenneth Mejia said in a media release Thursday.
The new Top 100 Problem Rental Properties dashboard includes a searchable database of all residential addresses with reported housing violation cases within the city of Los Angeles, a ranked list of the 100 addresses with the most violations and an interactive map.
“There has never before been an uncomplicated way for anyone to look up years’ worth of violations by address,” Mejia said in the release.
Data for the dashboard was compiled from multiple sources, including the Los Angeles Housing Department, Los Angeles City Planning and the L.A. County Assessor’s Office, according to the controller’s office.
The release also identified the top three addresses with the highest number of reported housing violations:
1. 636 1/2 North Hill Place, Chinatown
192 housing violation cases
2. 11700 West Wilshire Boulevard, Sawtelle
166 housing violation cases
3. 6650 West Forest Lawn Drive, Hollywood Hills
113 housing violation cases
“Our new dashboard is an easy‑to‑understand public tool that we hope will help renters and organizers document patterns of harm, as well as put pressure on both landlords and the City to act,” Mejia said. “Everyone deserves safe, stable and dignified housing.”
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