Eagle Pass Mayor Rolando Salinas, a Democrat, said officials from the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) informed him on Wednesday, Jan. 10, that state authorities have taken "full control" of Shelby Park as part of an operation to combat unprecedented illegal border crossings. (Related: 50 Texas counties have now passed resolutions declaring an INVASION.)
In a video livestreamed to his official Facebook account, Salinas noted that the city government had not made any kind of formal request for the state to take control of Shelby Park. "This is not something that we wanted," he said. "This is not something that we asked for as a city. I want to make that clear."
In his statement, Gov. Greg Abbott indicated that the measure is a means of strengthening the state's deterrents against migrants making their way to the border from Mexico.
"As caravans of migrants are moving through Mexico toward the U.S. border, we are making clear that Texas will be a tough place to cross," said Abbott.
Shelby Park lies at the western edge of Eagle Pass, facing the Rio Grande. It is a known staging area for Border Patrol, Texas National Guard and DPS agents. In recent weeks, Border Patrol has been using the park to hold migrants in an outdoor staging area before they are transported for further processing.
After seizing control of Shelby Park, Abbott deployed Texas National Guard units and vehicles to the area and erected fences blocking public access to the park. In one video circulating on social media, at least two National Guard vehicles can be seen standing guard behind a newly erected gate and are blocking Border Patrol agents from entering the park.
White House brings Shelby Park incident before the Supreme Court
On Thursday, Jan. 11, the Department of Justice filed a complaint before the Supreme Court citing the state government of Texas for preventing Border Patrol agents from accessing the 2.5-mile stretch of the southern border found in Shelby Park.
The Justice Department is asking the Supreme Court to weigh in on an emergency request from the White House seeking permission for the Border Patrol to remove all fencing and razor wire installed by the state of Texas in Shelby Park and along a 29-mile stretch of border with Mexico in the area.
The administration is arguing that states do not have the authority to prevent federal officials from carrying out their duties, and that federal not state officials have the primary responsibility for immigration policy and enforcement along the border.
"Texas's new actions demonstrate an escalation of the State's measures to block Border Patrol's ability to patrol or even to surveil the border and be in a position to respond to emergencies," said the Justice Department.
Watch this clip of Texas National Guard troopers preventing Border Patrol agents from accessing Shelby park.
This video is from the HaloRockTM channel on Brighteon.com.
More related stories:
NEW RECORD: Border Patrol reports 302,000 illegal migrant encounters in December alone.
INVASION USA: Swarm of military-aged immigrants arriving in Texas, citizen journalist warns.
Sources include:
Please contact us for more information.
