The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has sued Texas and Governor Greg Abbott, escalating tensions over the state’s recent law criminalizing illegal entry from outside the United States. Central to the lawsuit is Texas’s assertion of jurisdiction, typically reserved for federal authorities, in border matters. The case resides in the US District Court for the Western District of Texas Austin Division.
In the previous month, Governor Abbott endorsed SB 4 into law. This legislation manifests as a misdemeanor charge for the violation of the statute, escalating to a felony for multiple offenses. It empowers local magistrate judges to deal with immigration cases and issue removal orders, thus transferring the mantle of ensuring law compliance to the law enforcement officers of the state.
The federal lawsuit claims that Texas’s law is in direct violation of federal law. According to the Supremacy Clause of the US Constitution:
“This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding.”
In bolstering its preemption claim, DOJ brings up several provisions of federal law that already supervise this area and alleges SB 4 indirectly infringes the Foreign Commerce Clause, outlined in Article I Section 8 of the Constitution. The clause reserves the power to regulate commerce with foreign nations for Congress.
Commenting on the lawsuit, Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta remarked:
“SB 4 is clearly unconstitutional. Under the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution and longstanding Supreme Court precedent, states cannot adopt immigration laws that interfere with the framework enacted by Congress. The Justice Department will continue to fulfill its responsibility to uphold the Constitution and enforce federal law.”
However, this is not an isolated event involving Texas and immigration disputes with the federal government. On another front, litigation over Texas’s wire fence at the US-Mexico border and federal attempts to dismantle it is also underway. Find details about this case here.