Texas Gov. Greg Abbott bragged about doing more for the U.S-Mexico border wall than Donald Trump, saying under his leadership, Texas has built more miles of the wall than the former president did while he was in office.
During his Wednesday speech at the Texas Policy Summit, Abbott said, "Texas is the only state in the history of the United States to build our own border wall."
"We're not reinventing the wheel here. We're building the exact same wall the President Trump put up—with one difference," Abbott said. "When you look at the miles that Texas has already put up of the Trump border wall and the number of miles that are under construction right now, Texas is adding more of the Trump border wall in Texas than Donald Trump put up in the state of Texas."
Newsweek reached out to the Trump campaign via email for comment.
Abbott's comments come amid his ongoing feud with the federal government over the border crisis. The Republican governor has emerged as the face of GOP opposition to President Joe Biden's immigration policies.
"Joe Biden is simply not following the law of the United States of America," Abbott said Wednesday. "You remember just a couple weeks ago, he was telling all of you and all of his fellow Americans he needed Congress to pass some laws in order for him to have the ability to secure the border."
"Either A) he was just outright lying to you. B) he had no idea what he was talking about, or C) all of the above," the governor said to laugher in the audience. "I think it's all of the above."
Abbott launched Operation Lone Star in 2021 in an effort to curb the influx of migrants who have arrived at the southern border. The operation made headlines for busing migrants to so-called "sanctuary cities," a move that has strained resources in New York City, Washington D.C., Chicago, Denver and Los Angeles.
Texas' controversial Senate Bill 4—legislation allowing local and state law enforcement to arrest, detain and remove individuals suspected of entering the state illegally from other countries—has dominated the news cycle this week after a flurry of court rulings that blocked, unblocked and then once again blocked the implementation of the anti-immigration law.
The Biden administration has argued that allowing Texas to enforce the law would interfere with 150 years of precedent that gives the federal government sole ability to regulate immigration in entry and removal.
Texas officials, on the other hand, argue the state "has the sovereign right to defend itself from violent transnational cartels that flood the state with fentanyl, weapons, and all manner of brutality."
As part of Operation Lone Star, Abbott has spent approximately $1.28 billion on building its border wall, having added about 12 miles as of September, according to Texas Facilities Commission official John Raff.
Earlier this month, the governor posted videos of the border wall being constructed, writing in the caption that, "Until President Biden steps up and does his job as Commander-in-Chief, Texas will build border barriers to keep our country safe."
Update 03/20/24 2:35 p.m. ET: This story has been updated with additional information.
Update 03/20/24 3:00 p.m. ET: This story has been updated with additional information.
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Katherine Fung is a Newsweek reporter based in New York City. Her focus is reporting on U.S. and world politics. ... Read more
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