
The Justice Division is threatening Texas Gov. Greg Abbott with a possible lawsuit over his state’s newly minted anti-immigration legislation that makes it a state crime to move into Texas from Mexico with out federal authorization.
In a letter to Abbott, the Biden management warns that Senate Invoice 4, which grants native officers large latitude to apprehend and deport other folks believed to have entered Texas illegally, usurps immigration enforcement authority from federal officers.
The legislation, which is ready to take impact March 5, “is preempted and violates the United States Constitution” and “purports to create new state crimes tied to federal prohibitions on unlawful entry and reentry by noncitizens into the United States,” the letter says.
The letter additionally says the legislation creates a “separate state immigration scheme” and conflicts with federal protections for migrants who search U.S. coverage from persecution or torture.
CBS Information reporter Camilo Montoya-Galvez posted a duplicate of the letter on social media.