Appeals Court Extends Block on Texas Law that Allows Illegal Alien Arrests

The Biden administration scored another victory in its fight against Texas SB 4 taking effect. The new immigration law would allow law enforcement to arrest suspected illegal aliens in Texas. 

Texas SB 4 was to go into effect on March 5 but it has been blocked from doing so as legal challenges play out. It’s been a rollercoaster ride. At the core of the argument is who has the final say in immigration law enforcement. It is easy to say that the Constitution gives the federal government sole control over immigration issues, but what happens if the president and his administration do not enforce immigration laws on the books? What happens if the president signs executive orders that undo border security and the open border produces an invasion of a border state? 

Labeling the Biden border crisis as an invasion sounds extreme but it is what it is. What else do you call thousands of illegal immigrants crossing the southern border in large, coordinated groups on any given day? The illegals are getting more aggressive and overpowering law enforcement along the Texas-Mexico border. Is Texas expected to passively watch what is happening and do nothing? That seems to be the opinion of the White House. Shut up and deal with it, Texas.

SB 4 allows any law enforcement official in the state to arrest and detain illegal aliens in Texas. Judges are instructed to deport them back to Mexico. A federal appeals court ruled that the current block on SB 4 going into effect remains in place as the legal process plays out. 

A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, normally a conservative-leaning court, sided with the Biden administration lawyers in a 2 to 1 decision. The court left in place an injunction imposed last month by a lower court in Austin. The lower court found that the federal government will likely be successful in its arguments against SB 4. 

The law remains in legal limbo. It’s been a messy few days. The Supreme Court allowed it to go into effect but that only lasted for about 9 hours before the appeals court panel stopped it again. 

The latest defeat handed to Texas was not unexpected. Governor Abbott expects this to go to the Supreme Court and he is committed to making that happen. Will Abbott’s next move be to instruct the state’s lawyers to seek emergency action by the Supreme Court or let the decision stand and wait for arguments, which are set for April 3? He can take either action. The arguments on April 3 are over the substance of SB 4 and whether the injunction was appropriately ordered.

Does it look like Governor Abbott is throwing in the towel?

Nearly 200 soldiers in the Texas Tactical Border Force arrived in El Paso yesterday.

These soldiers will bolster Texas’ ability to hold the line.

Texas will continue to utilize all available resources and personnel to secure our border. pic.twitter.com/sIK8Dl10h2

— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) March 27, 2024

Abbott will continue to hold the line as much as possible. What else is he to do? He is convinced that declaring the border crisis as an invasion allows Texas to operate on its own, separate from the federal government. It’s going to take a decision from the Supreme Court to settle the issue.