Texas blocks Biden from disposing of border wall materials before Trump takes office
The Biden administration has been blocked from getting rid of any border wall materials over the next 30 days, passing the materials on for President-elect Trump to use as he chooses, according to a press release from the Texas attorney general office.
“We have successfully blocked the Biden Administration from disposing of any further border wall materials before President Trump takes office,” Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said in the release issued Friday.
“This follows our major victory forcing Biden to build the wall, and we will hold his Administration accountable for illegally subverting our Nation’s border security until their very last day in power, especially where their actions are clearly motivated by a desire to thwart President-elect Trump’s immigration agenda," he added in the release.
The order followed a hearing requested by Paxton over reports that the Biden administration was selling parts of the border wall. Last week, Trump asked a court in the Southern District of Texas to intervene in alleged sales of border wall materials, accusing the Biden administration of selling off the materials after it was required to do so by Congress.
According to the release, Texas is also entitled to documentation that proves that the Biden administration has not disposed of border wall materials, which would violate an injunction from Paxton earlier this year that required the Biden Administration to spend statutorily obligated funds on building the wall.
"If it is shown that the Biden Administration disposed of border wall materials purchased with funds subject to that injunction in violation of a court order—or that the Department of Justice made misrepresentations regarding the border materials that have been auctioned off—this would constitute unethical and sanctionable conduct, and the responsible parties could be held in contempt of court," the release read.
Trump has repeatedly vowed to crack down on immigration, suggesting he wants to completely reshape the nation’s immigration laws starting Jan. 20, the day he officially takes office. In an interview earlier this month, he signaled that he intends to push for mass deportations and an end to birthright citizenship.
Within weeks of his presidential victory, Trump also announced several appointments on immigration that reinforce those intentions.