BORDER SECURITYSupreme Court Lets Texas’ Immigration Law Stand, Intensifying Fight Between Texas and the U.S. Government Over Securing the Mexico Border
The U.S. Supreme Court issued an opinion on March 19, 2024, that Texas can – at least for now – have state authorities deport undocumented migrants, which has traditionally been the federal government’s responsibility. Texas’ attempts to control its border with Mexico and intervene on immigration issues – historically both the responsibility of the federal government – derive in part from the fact that many Texans believe that their Lone Star State is unique.
The U.S. Supreme Court issued an opinion on March 19, 2024, that Texas can – at least for now – have state authorities deport undocumented migrants, which has traditionally been the federal government’s responsibility.
Three liberal judges dissented from the opinion that temporarily backed Texas’ controversial new law, known as Senate Bill 4.
“That law upends the federal-state balance of power that has existed for over a century, in which the national government has had exclusive authority over entry and removal of noncitizens,” Supreme Court justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote in their dissent.
The Biden administration had tried to block Texas’ enforcement of SB 4, maintaining that the state law is “flatly inconsistent with federal law,” according to a letter U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar wrote to the Supreme Court justices.
The Supreme Court’s decision tossed the question of SB 4 to an appeals court for a ruling. With this 6-3 ruling, the justices also foreshadowed how they could ultimately rule on SB 4 if a ruling by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals is itself appealed to the Supreme Court in the near future.
This decision follows shortly after a failed Senate proposal to tighten border security and make it tougher for people to get asylum in the U.S. It also coincides with Americans’ rising concern about immigration.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has been battling with the Biden administration since 2021 over the state’s ability to secure its border with Mexico. Under Abbott’s leadership, Texas has sent Texas National Guard troops and state troopers to its 1,254-mile-long border with Mexico. Texas is the only border state that has built its own wall, partially dividing itself from Mexico. Texas has also constructed more than 100 miles of other barriers along the border.
I am a scholar of Texas politics and government at Rice University’s Baker Institute. Texas’ attempts to control its border with Mexico and intervene on immigration issues – historically both the responsibility of the federal government – derive in part from the fact that many Texans believe that their Lone Star State is unique.
Texas, for starters, is the largest U.S. state among the lower 48, geographically speaking, and the second-most populous after California. It has a distinct state culture and the history of being an independent republic.
