A federal judge on Thursday blocked a new law in Texas that gives police broad powers to arrest immigrants suspected of illegally entering the United States, marking a victory for the Biden administration in its dispute with Republican Gov. Greg Abbott over immigration enforcement.
The preliminary injunction issued by U.S. District Judge David Ezra temporarily halts the law that was scheduled to take effect on March 5, and came as President Biden and his likely November Republican rival, Donald Trump, were visiting Texas' southern border to discuss immigration. Texas officials are expected to appeal.
Opponents called the Texas measure the most dramatic attempt by a state to control immigration since a 2010 Arizona law that opponents criticized as a “show me your papers” bill. The U.S. Supreme Court has partially struck down Arizona's law, but some Republican leaders in Texas, who often refer to the influx of migrants as an “invasion,” want to reconsider that ruling.
Ezra cited the Constitution's sovereignty clause and US Supreme Court decisions as factors that contributed to his ruling. He said the Texas law would conflict with federal immigration law, the country's foreign relations and its treaty obligations.
Allowing Texas to “permanently nullify federal directives” because of the so-called invasion “would be tantamount to abrogating federal law and authority — an idea that is inconsistent with the Constitution and has been unequivocally rejected by federal courts since the Civil War.” The judge wrote.
Citing the Supreme Court's decision on the Arizona law, Ezra wrote that the Texas law was pre-empted, refuting claims by state officials that large numbers of illegal border crossings constitute an “invasion.”
The lawsuit is among several legal battles between Texas and the Biden administration over how far the state can go to try to prevent migrants from crossing the border.
The measure will allow state law enforcement officers to arrest people suspected of entering the country illegally. Once in custody, they can agree to an order from a Texas judge to leave the country or face a misdemeanor charge for entering the United States illegally. Migrants who do not leave after being ordered to do so may be arrested again and charged with a more serious felony.
At a hearing on February 15, Ezra expressed skepticism when the state made its case in what is known as Senate Bill 4. He also said he was somewhat sympathetic to concerns expressed by Abbott and other state officials about the large number of operations Illegal crossing.
Ezra, who was appointed by former President Reagan, said he feared the United States would become a confederation of states with their own immigration laws. “This is the same thing the Civil War said you couldn't do,” Ezra told the lawyers.
Civil rights groups, which also sued the state, said the law could lead to civil rights violations and racial profiling.
Republicans who support the law said it would not target immigrants already living in the United States because of a two-year statute of limitations on illegal entry fees, and would only apply along the state's border with Mexico.
Tensions have remained high between Texas and the Biden administration this year over who can patrol the border and how. Other GOP governors have expressed support for Abbott, who has said the federal government is not doing enough to enforce immigration laws.
Among other things, Texas erected a floating barrier in the Rio Grande River, placed razor wire along the U.S.-Mexico border, and blocked Border Patrol agents from accessing a riverside park in Eagle Pass, which they had previously used to process migrants.
