A crowd of migrants has torn down a concertina-wire barrier and broken through a line of Texas National Guard troops while trying to cross into the US from Mexico. The standoff occurred amid a heightened debate over border security, with Republicans accusing President Joe Biden of dereliction of duty.
Footage of the incident posted online on Thursday shows migrants dragging down a section of the barrier and a group of five National Guardsmen forming a line and trying to stop them.
Many of the men hold up their hands, signaling for the troops not to shoot them, but seconds later, migrants push through, knocking the heavily outnumbered soldiers out of the way and running to the border gate.
The New York Post, which had a reporter on scene, said the incident occurred at a border crossing in El Paso, Texas. About 600 migrants massed on the Mexico side before a section of the border barrier was torn away. After racing to the border gate, the men shouted at the troops on the other side. An unidentified source told the newspaper that the group was pushed back to the Mexico side of the border.
The Texas National Guard was deployed as part of Governor Greg Abbott’s $12 billion “Operation Lone Star” crackdown to stem flows of migrants illegally crossing into the state. Biden’s administration has filed lawsuits against Texas, challenging the state’s authority to put up barriers and police migrant traffic.
The federal government normally has jurisdiction over border security, but Abbott has invoked the state’s constitutional right to self-defense, arguing that Biden’s dereliction of duty has triggered a migrant “invasion.” Earlier this week, a federal court that is hearing one of Washington’s legal challenges temporarily paused implementation of a new Texas law that would allow state authorities to arrest and deport illegal migrants.
Surging illegal immigration has weighed on Biden’s approval ratings as he campaigns for reelection later this year. Scenes like Thursday’s border breach could undermine his efforts to convince voters that Republicans are to blame for record influxes of illegal migrants, drugs and suspected terrorists.
“Today’s attack showed us that yes, it’s a violent invasion,” conservative commentator Mike Cernovich said in a post on X (formerly Twitter). “The true nature was hidden as the regime left the border open. Now? There can be no denial.”