Greg Abbott brings new technology to fight to protect Texas border

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said National Guard members are being trained to operate airboats as part of the state's efforts to secure the state's borders.

“The Texas National Guard is receiving training to effectively operate and maintain airships in support of Operation Lone Star along the Texas-Mexico border,” the Republican governor said. I wrote it in the post Saturday on X (old Twitter).

“Texas continues to use all tools and strategies to secure its borders.”

An airboat is a flat-bottomed watercraft propelled by an aircraft-type propeller and powered by an aircraft or automobile engine.

newsweek has emailed an Abbott spokesperson for further comment.

Mr. Abbott has clashed with President Joe Biden's administration over immigration enforcement and steps the governor has taken to curb illegal immigration from Mexico.

As part of Abbott's multibillion border mission known as Operation Lone Star, Texas installed floating barriers on the Rio Grande and razor wire along the U.S.-Mexico border.

In January, Texas took control of Shelby Park, a riverside neighborhood in the border city of Eagle Pass that has miles of razor wire, and began denying access to U.S. Border Patrol agents over immigration enforcement. The feud with the Biden administration has intensified.

The Justice Department argued that the wires hindered the government's ability to patrol the border and reach migrants in need.

The Supreme Court then cleared the way for Border Patrol agents to remove the wires. But Mr. Abbott remained defiant, declaring that Texas has a “constitutional right to self-defense” and saying he would install more razor wire along the border.

Earlier this week, the Supreme Court temporarily blocked a new Texas law that would allow state law enforcement to detain people suspected of entering the country illegally.

With immigration a top issue in the 2024 presidential election, Mr. Abbott and the Republican Party have repeatedly criticized Mr. Biden's border policies. Meanwhile, the president has criticized Republican lawmakers who in February rejected a bipartisan border bill aimed at reducing the number of illegal border crossers at the southern border.

Abbott responded to Biden's State of the Union address on Thursday, saying it was “nothing more than a dog-and-pony show to convince the American people that the Biden administration is keeping America safe.”

Wednesday marks three years since he launched Operation Lone Star “to protect our country and our country from the historic flood of illegal immigrants, criminals, and deadly drugs like fentanyl that have flooded across our southern border.” said.

He said in a statement that Texas families are “grieving as a direct result of the Biden administration's inaction to secure our borders and keep dangerous drugs and criminals off our streets.”

“Until President Biden rises up and does his job as commander in chief for border security, Texas will use every tool and strategy to hold the line and keep our nation safe.”