Greg Abbott Praises Soldiers Holding 'Line' After Supreme Court Border Loss

Texas Governor Greg Abbott praised soldiers still fervently monitoring the southern border and employing razor wire in the aftermath of a divisive Supreme Court decision.

On Monday, the high court in a 5-4 vote ruled that federal agents could remove razor wire that Texas installed along a stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border. As a lawsuit continues to be litigated, Border Patrol agents can, for now, cut wire placed along the banks of the Rio Grande.

The decision was swayed by conservatives Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who sided with the court's three liberal justices to provide a temporary victory for a Biden administration that has faced heavy criticism due to the heavy flow of migrants being encountered at sites like Eagle Pass. Federal border agents encountered about 2.5 million migrants in total last year, according to data from Customs and Border Protection (CBP), surpassing the previous record high from a year earlier.

"The Texas National Guard continues to hold the line in Eagle Pass," Abbott wrote Tuesday on X, formerly Twitter, accompanied by a photo of soldiers on the lookout and surrounded by razor wire. "Texas will not back down from our efforts to secure the border in Biden's absence."

A video posted by CBS News' Camilo Montoya-Galvez appears to show Texas National Guard soldiers attaching copious amounts of razor wire to be erected at Eagle Pass.

"I STAND WITH TEXAS!!!" wrote Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene on X in reference to the video.

Abbott has drawn national attention, been praised and scrutinized for his handling of the influx of migrants. Some of that criticism has resulted from his state bussing approximately 80,000 migrants to Democratic-controlled cities like Chicago and New York City for the past year and change.

An editorial in The Houston Chronicle, Texas' largest daily newspaper, referred to Abbott as a "coward" and "embarrassment" for how he has handled the situation at the border and the politics associated with it.

Criticism ramped up when Customs and Border and Protection (CBP) officials were allegedly prevented from aiding six migrants in distress who were attempting to cross the Rio Grande River on January 12, some of whom drowned.

The governor also has policy proponents, such as former Yuma Border Patrol Chief Chris Clem—who said the Supreme Court's ruling may just be a temporary setback and should be used by conservatives as a strong political message.

"It hurts right now, but let's play the long game because these Supreme Court rulings set the precedent," Clem told Fox News on Tuesday. "Think about this, three of the four border states in the southern border are run by Democratic governors who really aren't enforcing the law; Texas is.

"When there's a change in administration, hopefully [as] soon as this upcoming election, we are going to use those precedents to go ahead and do what we need to secure the border."