Laura Barrón-López:
So, essentially, the Justice Department said today that Abbott did not have permanent approval from the Army Corps of Engineers, which oversees this, that he never got approval to place these floating buoys in the Rio Grande, which stretch about 1,000 feet or so next to Eagle Pass, which is that border community, and that, also, they said in the court today that the this action by Abbott is harming U.S.-Mexico relations.
And they also said in court briefings filed prior to the hearing today that this language used by Abbott around invasion is not accurate. It's something that he doesn't have the right to determine whether or not there is an invasion occurring to Texas, that that is a federal right.
Now, ahead of the hearing today, local advocates, as well as border residents, came to speak out against Operation Lone Star tactics that the governor has deployed.
Karen Gonzalez from The Border Organization of Del Rio, Texas, took issue with exactly what Abbott is doing.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7sa7SZ6arn1%2Bjsri%2Fx6isq2ejnby4e8Wem56qkaF6q8HDoJxmoJWWv7R5wKuerqWVo8G0ec6vnKtlpJrFor%2BMn6OomaSeu6h5wZqpq6GVp3qwuoyroKhll6eur7DE