Texas AG Demands Biden Resume Border Wall Construction After Court Deadline Expiry

After a key deadline to appeal a court ruling expired, the Biden administration must proceed with constructing a border wall using approximately $1.4 billion allocated by Congress for a barrier along the U.S.-Mexico border, according to the Texas Attorney General’s office on Thursday.

The funds were allocated during former President Donald Trump’s tenure. Texas sued the Biden administration six months after he took office in 2021, challenging the reallocation of the money and citing federal appropriations laws.

In May, U.S. District Judge Drew Tipton, appointed by Trump, ruled in favor of Texas and issued a permanent injunction. The federal government had a 60-day window to appeal the order, which expired on Monday, as noted by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office. This development necessitates the resumption of spending on the wall project.

During a March hearing, Tipton detailed the terms of his order, but a transcript of that hearing was not available on Thursday. While Paxton’s office announced the victory, they did not provide a copy of the hearing transcript upon request.

The U.S. Justice Department declined to comment on the matter.

“This is a final victory against Biden’s attempt to defund the border wall,” Paxton stated. “I sued and won to stop their unlawful scheme. Now, the administration has thrown in the towel by declining to appeal their defeat and will be legally required to build the wall.”

On his Inauguration Day, President Biden issued an executive order to halt construction of the wall, Trump’s hallmark project, and redirect the funds. However, amid ongoing litigation, Biden acknowledged that his administration was legally bound to continue certain projects due to pre-existing congressional appropriations.

“I tried to get them to reappropriate it, to redirect that money,” Biden said last year. “They didn’t. They wouldn’t. And in the meantime, there’s nothing under the law other than to use the money for what it was appropriated. I can’t stop that.”