Photo: Anna Moneymaker / Getty Images
The Department of Justice (DOJ) sued Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Friday in an effort to block an executive order that severely limits the transportation of migrants in the state, calling the order unconstitutional, according to The New York Times
The lawsuit was filed a day after Attorney General Merrick B Garland sent Abbott a letter telling him that should rescind Executive Order , which prohibits transportation providers private companies provide ground transportation to many migrants and make it difficult for them to access their final destinations in the United States. Garland cautions in his letter to Abbott that this executive order “violates federal law in numerous respects, and Texas cannot legally enforce the order on any federal official or private parties working for the United States.”
The complaint, filed before the Western District Court of Texas, based in El Paso, maintains that the governor’s decision “interferes” with the government’s obligations and “obstructs ”Your agreements with other organizations.
Therefore, ask the judge to declare the order invalid and to prevent its execution immediately.
The decree signed by Abbott urges agents of the Texas Department of Public Safety to stop and search any vehicle in which they suspect that undocumented immigrants are being transported , and authorizes them to impound those vehicles that are doing so.
For its part, Abbott defended that its order to Texas law enforcement agencies has the purpose of preventing transportation deprived of undocumented migrants who, according to the governor, pose a risk to public health, since they may be carriers of the coronavirus.
In the last week, hospitalizations for covid – 19 in Texas have increased almost a 40%.
Garland’s lawsuit is the latest episode in the open battle between Texas and President Joe Biden’s Administration over immigration.
Weeks ago, Abbott announced that Texas would continue with the construction of a wall on the border with Mexico, an idea of former President Donald Trump (2017 – 2021), who started that work to stop illegal migration.
Also, Abbott threatened to suspend state licenses of entities in Texas that, under contract with the federal government, are used to house minor migrants who arrive at the border without the company of responsible adults.
With information from agencies