El Paso, Texas, ‘at breaking point’ amid surge in refugee, migrant arrivals
Al JazeeraOct 01, 2023
Texas Installing Razor Wire Along New Mexico Border
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Image copyright: Flickr [via Wikimedia Commons]
The Facts
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott recently announced on X, formerly known as Twitter, that a razor wire barrier is being built on the New Mexico border — the latest step in his Operation Lone Star — claiming that migrants have illegally crossed from Mexico into New Mexico before heading to Texas to circumvent barriers around El Paso.
The two-mile-long barrier, which has been deployed in recent weeks by the Texas National Guard, consists of two rows of concertina wire strung between metal poles running through an urban area west of Interstate 10 near Mount Cristo Rey.
The Spin
Republican narrative
A wide gap in the steel barrier along the US-Mexico border has allowed illegal immigrants to easily cross into Sunland Park, N.M., and later walk over to El Paso, Texas. As the Biden administration fails to secure America's southern border and halt illegal immigration, Texas has been left with no other choice but to take this matter into its own hands once again.
Democratic narrative
This latest political stunt to deprecate immigrants is outrageously unconstitutional, as this concertina wire barrier limits free movement between US states, violating the rights of Americans. Once again, Abbott has come up with an idea that provides no real long-term solution to the current southern border crisis.
