Greg Abbott Uses 'Supreme Law' of Texas to Give Soldiers Power Over Biden

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has declared his state's "right to self-defense," using "the supreme law of the land" to give soldiers power over President Joe Biden on immigration at the U.S.-Mexico border.

Abbott and the Justice Department have been duking it out in court over a number of deterrent tactics that the governor has tried to use to stop the surge of migrants illegally crossing into the U.S. through the southern border. The tactics have included a floating barrier across the Rio Grande and razor-wire fencing.

In the 2023 fiscal year, which ended in September, U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) had 3.2 million encounters, according to agency data. Encounter data includes USBP Title 8 Apprehensions, Office of Field Operations (OFO) Title 8 Inadmissibles and Title 42 Expulsions.

Abbott issued a statement on Wednesday criticizing Biden for violating "his oath to faithfully execute immigration laws enacted by Congress."

In his statement, Abbott said the Biden administration's failure to "protect each [State] against invasion," as stated in Article IV, Section 4 of the Constitution, "has triggered Article I, § 10, Clause 3, "which reserves to this State the right of self-defense.

"For these reasons, I have already declared an invasion under Article I, § 10, Clause 3 to invoke Texas's constitutional authority to defend and protect itself. That authority is the supreme law of the land and supersedes any federal statutes to the contrary."

Abbott said that 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."

Newsweek reached out to Abbott's office and the White House via email as well as the Justice Department via online form for comment.

Amid Abbott's legal battles with the Justice Department, which claims that the governor's deterrence tactics impede federal law, there have been calls for Texas to declare independence from the United States, a movement being coined as Texit.

Last December, the Texas Nationalist Movement (TNM) gave the Texas Republican Party what it claimed was a petition of 139,456 signatures that moved to have an advisory referendum on Texas's independence on the March 2024 primary ballot. But the Texas GOP rejected the petition as it was submitted late and the "vast majority" of the signatures were "invalid," according to Chair Matt Rinaldi.

Biden is not only receiving criticism from Abbott, but many Republican lawmakers amid the massive influx of illegal migrants during his term. Biden has admitted that fixing America's immigration system is "a difficult challenge," but said last week that he is ready to make "massive changes" to border policy as a bipartisan effort by the Senate to craft a deal is underway.

Update 1/24/24, 4:18 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.