OPINION:
“Americans say Biden’s border chaos is an invasion; federal judges say it’s not” (web, April 29) suggests that Texas is not advancing its best argument to support its illegal immigrant law.
Texas apparently relies on the Constitution’s invasion provisions. It is doubtful that the flood of illegals crossing the state’s border is an invasion, and even if it is, I suspect the Texas law continues to apply even if the flood dwindles to a trickle. But Texas doesn’t need an invasion to make its case. Its police powers support its law.
Under the law, a state’s police power is not limited to officers on the beat. It’s a broad power to protect the health, safety and welfare of citizens. If ever the facts called for exercise of police power, this is it. Illegal immigrants despoil border property and engage in human trafficking, killer fentanyl smuggling and other crimes. They drain public coffers, overburden schools and other public facilities, and allow terrorists and violent gang members to slip across the border.
Since the illegal immigrants are not health-vetted, they could also infect legal Texas residents with illnesses and other ailments. They’re a trifecta, imperiling the health, safety and welfare of all in Texas.
JIM DUEHOLM
Washington
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