(Conceptual visualization of proposed buoy system on the Rio Grande. Photo: Texas Governor's Office)
Governor Greg Abbott says Texas authorities will soon deploy chains of buoys down the middle of the Rio Grande to deter illegal border crossings. Abbott made the announcement on Thursday at the Capitol, where he signed six border security bills into law. The new laws empower federal agents to arrest illegals suspected of committing state crimes, authorize drones for border surveillance, and repay farmers and ranchers whose land is damaged by illegals.
Abbott said the deployment of new marine floating barriers to deter illegal crossings in hotspots along the Rio Grande River. This strategy will proactively prevent illegal crossings between ports of entry by making it more difficult to cross the Rio Grande and reach the Texas side of the southern border. The first 1,000 feet of the marine floating barrier will be deployed near Eagle Pass.
"Thanks to the leadership and hard work of Director McCraw, General Suelzer, and their teams, Texas has pushed back against the swell of migrants and held the line to keep people out of Texas—but there's more that needs to be done," said Governor Abbott. "The Texas Legislature has stepped up to make sure we continue to robustly respond to President Biden's growing border crisis, including allocating $5.1 billion for border security. Today, I am signing six bills from this year's regular session to ensure that Texas can continue to do even more to stop illegal immigration at our southern border and provide new tools to the brave men and women along the southern border to protect Texans and Americans from the chaos and crisis of the border."
"Today, public enemy number one is the Mexican cartels, and they impact every community in Texas and the United States," said Director Steve McCraw. "Our mission is to detect and interdict transitional criminal activity and create proactive strategies to combat it. It's dangerous to cross between ports of entry, and securing the border between them is ideal to fight Mexican cartels."
"Texas is extremely fortunate to have a Governor who is absolutely relentless in his actions to protect our state's sovereignty, secure our border, and preserve the rule of law," said Adjutant General of Texas Major General Thomas Suelzer. "The legislators behind me passed comprehensive laws to secure the Texas-Mexico border, and I applaud all of them for their work on this important issue."