(The Center Square) – To date, 33 Texas counties have declared an invasion in their county, in the state of Texas, or have expressed support for Texas declaring an invasion at the southern border. More are in the process of making similar declarations, according to sources who’ve spoken to The Center Square.
One county judge has taken a stand for what he says is a dire situation that his small county located roughly 104 miles north of Laredo, Texas, is facing.
McMullen County Judge James Teal signed a declaration of disaster on July 11 in which he declared the existence of an invasion in both his county and in Texas.
In the month of May alone, “McMullen County law enforcement documented over 4,000 illegal aliens who avoided apprehension by Border Patrol and whose whereabouts are currently unknown,” Teal said.
McMullen County is the fourth-least populated county in Texas with roughly 600 residents.
Foreign nationals entering the U.S. illegally in between ports of entry and intentionally seeking to evade capture by law enforcement are referred to by Border Patrol agents as “gotaways.” The number of gotaways entering McMullen County in one month was nearly seven times greater than its population. Month-over-month, the number of gotaways is dwarfing the county’s population.
‘The ongoing crisis on the Texas border is not acceptable and has resulted in a security threat and humanitarian disaster with overwhelming consequences to the residents of McMullen County and Texans, alike,” Teal said.
The “health, safety, and welfare of McMullen County residents is under an imminent threat of disaster from the unprecedented levels of illegal immigration, human trafficking, and drug smuggling coming across the U.S. border from Mexico,” he added.
Teal also refers to the unprecedented number of people apprehended along the entire southern border, including known terrorists, which is now at 78.
In his declaration, Teal requested Gov. Greg Abbott “declare the existence of an invasion on its border with Mexico and take necessary actions to preserve and protect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Texas” and to act “under the constitutional authority granted to him under Article 4, Section 7 of the Texas Constitution and Article 1, Section 10, Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution and immediately prevent and/or remove all persons invading the sovereignty of Texas and that of the United States.”
The commissioner’s court approved the declaration, and it continues in effect until terminated by the county judge.
While the judges of Jeff Davis and Rockwall counties have expressed support for declaring an invasion, their county commissioners didn’t sign resolutions. Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin is the only mayor in Texas or the U.S. to declare an invasion.
Some county commissioners and judges passed resolutions declaring support to secure the border, citing Article 4, Section 4 of the U.S. Constitution and Article 4, Section 7 of the Texas Constitution. Some judges issued declarations of disaster in which they declare an invasion in their county and in Texas.
Many resolutions and declarations express support for border counties and for Abbott’s border security mission, Operation Lone Star. Some disaster declarations stipulate they are only in effect for seven days and are currently being amended.
The judges and commissioners who’ve signed resolutions or issued declarations of invasion represent the counties of Atascosa, Burnet, Chambers, Clay, Ector, Edwards, Ellis, Goliad, Hamilton, Hardin, Hood, Hunt, Jack, Jasper, Johnson, Kinney, Lavaca, Liberty, Live Oak, Madison, McMullen, Montague, Orange, Parker, Presidio, Terrell, Throckmorton, Tyler, Van Zandt, Wharton, Wichita, Wilson, and Wise.
As more counties declare an invasion or express support for doing so, they are encouraged to contact The Center Square, which continues to add confirmed counties to a growing list.
The Republican Party of Texas has also called on the governor to declare an invasion and the Texas Public Policy Foundation has expressed support for Texas declaring an invasion.
They’ve done so as a record number of now more than 5 million people have been apprehended or evaded capture at the southern border since January 2021, the greatest number in U.S. history. They total more than the individual populations of 25 U.S. states.
While the Biden administration continues to claim the border is closed, Abbott told The Center Square, “When you see the chaos and devastation caused by the Biden administration policies on the border, it’s shocking that’s he’s not been down there to see what he caused.
“He’s clearly by his own policies caused record-setting illegal immigration. But it goes beyond that. Look at the challenges that people in Del Rio, Eagle Pass and the small communities along the border have to deal with every single day.”
Abbott hasn’t yet declared an invasion, but he’s authorized state law enforcement to apprehend illegal foreign nationals in Texas and return them to ports of entry. He also created interstate border security compacts with Republican governors, signed memorandums of understanding with four Mexican governors, and began building a border wall on Texas soil.
The Texas legislature has allocated more than $4 billion to fund Texas’ border security efforts. Since March, Texas law enforcement officials have apprehended 308,700 illegal foreign nationals, made more than 20,200 criminal arrests, including more than 17,900 charged with felonies.
Texas DPS has also seized more than 336 million lethal doses of fentanyl, enough to kill everyone in the United States.