Washington, D.C. – Today, Chairman Jodey Arrington (TX-19) issued the following statement after the Supreme Court allowed S.B. 4 to go into effect:
“The Constitution is clear: Section IV Article 4 says the federal government ‘shall protect each of [the states] against Invasion.’ When the federal government fails to fulfill this constitutional duty, Article 1 Section 10 expressly guarantees states the sovereign power to repel an invasion and defend their citizenry from overwhelming and ‘imminent danger.’
“It is clear to any honest and objective person living in this country that President Biden has willfully disregarded the laws of the land, abdicated his constitutional duty to provide for a common defense, and unilaterally surrendered control of our border to terrorist drug cartels.
“I applaud the Supreme Court for allowing Texas to do what President Biden won’t – stop the chaos, secure the border, and protect Texans and Americans.”
Background:
- On June 8, 2021 – just six months into Biden’s Border Crisis – Chairman Arrington introduced H. Res. 50, legislation which reaffirms a states’ right to secure their own border and protect their citizens when the federal government fails to act.
- The resolution, which has since garnered support from lawmakers from over half of the 50 states, including the entire Texas Republican Delegation, references Article 4 Section 4, which says the federal government “shall protect each of [the states] against invasion,” and Article 1 Section 10, which gives states the sovereign power to repel an invasion and defend their citizenry from “imminent danger” that “will not permit delay.”
- On December 18, 2023, Governor Abbott signed into state law Senate Bill 4, which was passed by the Texas legislature in a special session. Senate Bill 4 criminalizes illegal entry and reentry into the state from a foreign nation and authorizes state judicial officers to order offenders to return to the nation from which they illegally entered.
- On January 3, 2024, the Department of Justice (DOJ) filed suit in the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas to enjoin the Texas bill from taking effect in early March. The DOJ argued that the legislation is unconstitutional and preempted by federal law.
- On February 29, 2024, Federal Judge David Ezra issued a preliminary injunction blocking Texas’ SB 4 just 5 days before the new law would take effect.
- On February 13, 2024, Chairman Arrington filed an amicus brief with 45 cosigners in support of Texas and SB 4.
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