With the US Border Patrol having become little more than a “Welcome Wagon” for illegal migrants flooding into Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott has ordered the state’s National Guard to take over a river park in Eagle Pass and to bar the Border Patrol from entering.
The Texas National Guard has maintained a presence in Shelby Park for three years, to “restrict access to organizations that perpetuate illegal immigrant crossings in the park and greater Eagle Pass area,” according to a prepared statement. Eagle Pass — dubbed “Illegal Pass by some — has been at the epicenter of the years-long migrant crisis in Texas.
The seizure of Shelby Park was criticized by the city’s Democrat government and by the Biden regime, but the Border Patrol union has applauded it. National Border Patrol Council President Brandon Judd said in a statement:
Governor Abbott is not harming Border Patrol operations, he is enhancing them. His seizing control of Shelby Park allows our agents to deploy to troubled spots that experience high numbers of gotaways. Governor Abbott’s actions should be seen as a force multiplier.
Conservative political leaders have also expressed support for Abbott’s actions. Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) tweeted: “The Governor has my full support to go as far as is necessary (from a legal perspective) to secure Texas’ border.”
Ironically, Eagle Pass figured prominently in another Texas/US conflict: the American Civil War. Shelby Park is named for Confederate Gen. Joseph O. Shelby, who famously marched his 200-man army into Mexico at the war’s close to avoid surrendering to Union forces. He is said to have buried the unit’s battle flag in the waters of the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass to prevent its capture by the pursuing federals. Today, the circumstances may be different, but the conflict remains the same.
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