Justice Department threatens legal action against Texas over plan to stop vehicles carrying migrants

Attorney General Merrick Garland on Thursday asked Texas Governor Greg Abbott to immediately revoke an executive order that instructs state authorities to stop vehicles suspected of carrying migrants released from U.S. Border Patrol custody, arguing that such a directive is illegal and unconstitutional.

On Wednesday, Abbott, a Republican who has vocally opposed the Biden administration's immigration policies, ordered the Texas Department of Public Safety to stop and re-route vehicles "upon reasonable suspicion" that they may be transporting migrants who crossed the southern border without authorization. Abbott said the order is designed to protect Texas communities from migrants who could spread the coronavirus, accusing the Biden administration of fueling a public health crisis along the borderlands by scaling back Trump-era restrictions.