Republican Rep. Chip Roy blasts 'invasion at southern border' during House hearing

Sheri Walsh
·4 min read
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Chairman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, blasts the "invasion at the southern border" during a House Judiciary Subcommittee hearing Tuesday at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI
Chairman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, blasts the "invasion at the southern border" during a House Judiciary Subcommittee hearing Tuesday at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI

Jan. 30 (UPI) -- Rep. Chip Roy blasted the "invasion at the southern border" and urged Texas, during a House Judiciary subcommittee hearing Tuesday, to ignore last week's Supreme Court order to remove barbed wire along the U.S.-Mexico border.

"This is very clearly an invasion. It is a purposeful one, and it's inflicting dangerous consequences on our country and the people of Texas," Roy, R-Texas, told the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government before accusing President Joe Biden of "failing to fulfill his duty to defend our country, to defend the borders of the United States, as required by the Constitution."

Omar Jadwat, director of the Immigrant's Rights Project at the American Civil Liberties Union, countered during his testimony that "150 years of Supreme Court precedent says that states do not have the authority to take immigration matters into their own hands."

"What amount of death or destruction among the people of Texas or any other state is sufficient to say that the state should take action?" Roy asked the panel.

Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Biden administration can remove razor wire from the U.S. southern border, which Texas Gov. Greg Abbott ordered erected to prevent migrants from entering the state. Abbott has also brought in the Texas National Guard, deployed water barrier buoys along the Rio Grande River and bussed migrants from Texas to Democrat-led cities.

Director of the Immigrants' Rights Project at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Omar Jadwat, First Assistant Attorney General of Texas Brent Webster, Director of Litigation at the Immigration Reform Law Institute Christopher Hajec and Former Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich look on Tuesday during a House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government hearing on the southern border at the U.S. Capitol. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI

During Tuesday's hearing, Roy pressed witnesses on whether state governors should take action to defend their borders, while citing Article 1 Section 10 of the Constitution, which states that no state may engage in war "unless actually invaded, or in such imminent danger as will not admit of delay."

Former Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich pointed to the "extensive well-documented and persistent threat" of drug cartels as reason to defend the border, as he questioned the priorities of the Biden administration.

Director of the Immigrants' Rights Project at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Omar Jadwat argued Tuesday, during a House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government on the southern border at the U.S. Capitol, that states do not have the authority to enforce immigration law. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI
Director of the Immigrants' Rights Project at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Omar Jadwat argued Tuesday, during a House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government on the southern border at the U.S. Capitol, that states do not have the authority to enforce immigration law. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI

"Why was President Biden so quick to tear down the border fence in Texas, but so slow to shoot down a Chinese spy balloon?" Brnovich asked.

Christopher Hajec, director of litigation at the Immigration Reform Law Institute, testified that he believes the term "invasion" applies to the southern border, as he accused the Biden administration of "attempting to accomplish the opposite of the purpose of federal immigration law."

Director of Litigation at the Immigration Reform Law Institute Christopher Hajec looks on Tuesday during a House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government hearing on the southern border at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI
Director of Litigation at the Immigration Reform Law Institute Christopher Hajec looks on Tuesday during a House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government hearing on the southern border at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI

"When you think of the term 'invasion,' it paints the so-called invaders as violent, and even more so, it authorizes violence against those people," Jadwat countered.