US appeals court allows Texas to keep anti-migrant river barriers active

A federal appeals court ruled on Thursday that the state of Texas is allowed to keep its controversial river buoys in place for now at the US-Mexico border.

A three-judge panel of the New Orleans-based 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a previous ruling handed down by a federal judge 24 hours earlier, but provided no explanation for granting the state’s request, according to the Dallas Morning News.

On Wednesday, US District Court Judge David Ezra issued a preliminary injunction for the state to remove the river barriers in the Rio Grande by September 15 and also barred the installation of similar structures without federal approval.

But Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican, immediately appealed the order and got his request granted one day later.

'Political gains'

In July, Abbott ordered state agencies to deploy the floating barriers in the Rio Grande to protect the state from what the governor called an illegal migrant "invasion."

Republican leaders have often used inflated rhetoric in what Democrats and many activists call a cynical ploy to reap political gains from border issues.

However, the Biden administration filed a lawsuit arguing that the state did not get permission from the federal government to set up the barriers and that the structures impeded US Border Patrol agents from patrolling the area and endangered migrants crossing the river.

The appeals court has not yet scheduled a hearing date for the case.

Last month, two people were found dead near the floating barrier.​​​​​​​