Biden administration asks Supreme Court to allow border agents to cut razor wire installed by Texas

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Biden administration has requested the Supreme Court to enable Border Patrol agents to remove razor wire installed by Texas at the U.S.-Mexico border, amid an ongoing lawsuit regarding the wire. The Justice Department submitted an urgent appeal on Tuesday, seeking to overturn last month's appellate decision that supported Texas and stopped federal agents from dismantling the concertina wire the state placed across approximately 30 miles along the Rio Grande, near the border city of Eagle Pass. This area has seen a large influx of migrants in the past months. The court case, involving Democratic President Joe Biden's administration and Republican-led Texas, is part of a larger conflict over immigration enforcement. Razor wire has also been installed by the state around El Paso and the Rio Grande Valley, where a high volume of migrants have crossed. Texas Governor Greg Abbott has additionally approved the installation of floating barriers in the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass, permitting troopers to arrest and incarcerate thousands of trespassing migrants. The administration noted in court documents that the wire hinders Border Patrol agents from reaching migrants crossing the river; it also argued that federal immigration law should take precedence over Texas's attempts to curb migrant inflow. Texas officials have countered that federal agents dismantle the wire intentionally to aid groups illegally crossing the river before they are processed.