Texas land commissioner authorizes law enforcement to patrol cartel hot spot island in the Rio Grande

The Texas land commissioner has authorized Texas law enforcement to patrol a small island in the Rio Grande River after determining that it belongs to Texas.

In an interview with Fox News Digital, Buckingham said that the territory was not disputed, but it was necessary for her office to declare it as belonging to the state to remove any ambiguity in response to a request by law enforcement. The decision was made based on records from the General Land Office, and it provides law enforcement access, including vegetation management, as long as there is compliance with state and federal regulations.  Adam Shaw is a politics reporter for Fox News Digital, primarily covering immigration and border security.

He can be reached at adam.shaw2@fox.com or on Twitter.

"One of the things that the General Land Office does is determine the center of a waterway. Everything that is the center of the Rio Grande and north, of course, the state of Texas and the United States territory. The land just hadn't been accurately declared as it was forming in the river. That's why we had to step in and officially declare it Texas territory," she said.