A plan by Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) would give states the authority to secure the United States-Mexico border without needing federal approval from President Joe Biden’s administration, Breitbart News has exclusively learned.
Blackburn’s “CONTAINER Act” would give border states the power to place temporary structures — including razor wire, shipping containers, and other barriers — along the southern border without first seeking approval from the federal government.
The legislation invokes the Constitution’s so-called “invasion clause,” which gives the states powers to protect themselves from an invasion. Under current law, though, states must seek federal approval before placing structures on federal land.
“Since President Biden took office, there have been over 8.5 million apprehensions at our southern border, turning every state into a border state,” Blackburn told Breitbart News.
The CONTAINER Act would also allow border states to keep such temporary structures on federal land for up to a year with the ability to extend their placement for 90-day periods, approved by the Interior Department and Department of Agriculture.
The sun sets as a border wall constructed of shipping containers and topped with concertina wire, built on federal land by Republican governor Doug Ducey, stands along the US-Mexico border in the Coronado National Forest near Hereford, Arizona on December 20, 2022. (PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images)
Shipping containers line the US and Mexico Border at Coronado National Memorial in Cochise County, Arizona, US, on Sunday, Dec. 11, 2022. (Rebecca Noble/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Shipping containers line the US and Mexico Border at Coronado National Memorial in Cochise County, Arizona, US, on Saturday, Dec. 10, 2022. (Rebecca Noble/Bloomberg via Getty Images
“Meanwhile, his administration has only exacerbated the problem by trying to stop the use of measures that will secure our border like shipping containers and razor wire,” Blackburn continued. “Because Joe Biden refuses to do so, it’s clear Congress must act to give border states the explicit authority to protect their communities and the sovereignty of the United States.”
Indeed, most recently, Biden’s Department of Justice (DOJ) has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene and have Texas officials remove razor wire that the state has erected along the southern border to help cut illegal immigration.
Similarly, in December 2022, Biden’s DOJ forced the state of Arizona to remove shipping containers it had placed along the border to reduce illegal immigration. The containers had successfully closed massive holes in the border wall.
Despite record-breaking illegal immigration, the majority of the nation’s nearly 2,000-mile-long border remains open and without any barriers.
John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jbinder@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter here.