Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said Thursday that the state would build its own border wall, though he stopped short of mentioning any details, The Texas Tribune reports.
Abbott said that Texas would build part of the wall themselves after the Biden administration halted border wall construction.
“It will help all of us to work on ways to stem the flow of unlawful immigration and to stem the flow of illegal contraband,” Abbott said.
Along with the border wall, Abbott also touted $1 billion in funding for a number of border initiatives and plans to increase arrests along the border.
"They don't want to come to across the state of Texas anymore because it's not what they were expecting," Abbott said. "It's not the red carpet that the federal administration rolled out to them."
Campaign ploy?
Abbott, who faces re-election next year, made the announcement after former Republican state Sen. Don Huffines announced a primary challenge and vowed to finish the border wall in Texas.
"We will completely shut down the border until the crisis is solved and eliminate all taxpayer-funded subsidies to illegal aliens," Huffines tweeted earlier this month. "I am not afraid to take on the federal government."
No details:
Abbott said that he would provide details on the project next week.
Trump built just 450 miles of the border wall, mostly in Arizona.
"The border crisis is no laughing matter," Abbott said. "This is something that also is not a tourism site for members of Congress to make an annual pilgrimage to and see the border, and then go back and do absolutely nothing at the federal government level to solve the crisis."
