Texas Democrats in Congress: Biden must assert authority to check Abbott on immigration

The Texas Democratic congressional delegation Tuesday condemned reports that Texas state troopers were being ordered to push migrants who reach the American shores of the Rio Grande "back into the water" as part of Gov. Greg Abbott's border security initiative.

But several of the lawmakers in the virtual news conference from Washington also expressed frustration that the Democratic Biden administration has not asserted its federal authority and has allowed the Republican governor to effectively set immigration policy in Texas.

"I think, in short, the administration simply needs to tell Greg Abbott to get out of the way," said U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett of Austin, who was among a dozen Democrats participating in the event.

The catalyst for the call organized by U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro of San Antonio were reports published late Monday by Hearst Newspapers quoting an email from one trooper from the Texas Department of Public Safety and backed up by another that migrants' lives were being put in danger by Abbott's Operation Lone Star.

Trooper: Migrants 'made in the image of God'

The trooper, a medic who made it clear in the email to his superior that he supports the aims of the initiative, listed several incidents in the Del Rio area in late June and early July during which distressed migrants, including injured children and a pregnant woman who miscarried, were not given water or proper medical care despite intense heat.

He also noted that five migrants had drowned in the river and that others were injured by the razor wire installed by the Texas operation along the Rio Grande.

"I truly believe in the mission of Operation Lone Star; I believe we have stepped over a line into the inhumane," Trooper Nicholas Wingate said in his email to a DPS sergeant. "We need to operate it correctly in the eyes of God. We need to recognize that these are people who are made in the image of God and need to be treated as such."

In a follow-up email, Trooper Brandon Tinsley corroborated the account.

"Trooper Wingate is the author of this recap, but together we discussed its contents and I fully co-sign the message," Tinsley wrote. 

In a news release Tuesday afternoon, Abbott insisted no policies have been implemented that would lead to the mistreatment of people attempting to cross without legal authorization.

Abbott responds to troopers' allegations

"No orders or directions have been given under Operation Lone Star that would compromise the lives of those attempting to cross the border illegally," Abbott said. "The Texas Department of Public Safety and Texas Military Department continue taking steps to monitor migrants in distress, provide appropriate medical attention when needed, and encourage them to use one of the 29 international bridges along the Texas-Mexico Border where they can safely and legally cross."

More:What to know about Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's floating buoy barrier along Rio Grande

Meanwhile, DPS spokesman Travis Considine said the agency's Office of Inspector General was investigating the allegations. And he released an email from DPS chief Steve McCraw reminding his chain of command that frontline officers at the border cannot ignore migrants who are at risk, even if they crossed the river without legal authorization.

"The priority of life requires that we rescue migrants from harm and we will continue to do so," McCraw said in the directive issued on the afternoon of July 11.  "In fact, Texas Troopers and Texas National Guard Soldiers have saved the lives of numerous migrants at the risk of their own safety, and one soldier died during a water rescue attempt."

Still, the congressional Democrats continued their criticism that they have aired since the border initiative was launched two years ago but said the stepped-up policies by the three-term Republican governor that include installing floating barriers in the international river are both illegal and inhumane.

"We're asking for Greg Abbott to cease operation of his Operation Lone Star until these claims can be fully investigated and can be rectified," Castro said. "This should not be policy or practice of the state of Texas for the Department of Public Safety."

A plea to the president

The news conference followed a letter written last week by U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar of El Paso asking the U.S. Justice and State departments to examine whether installation of buoys that began in Eagle Pass earlier this month is legal under federal law and international treaties.

More:Feds: Texas didn't get permits to build barriers at US-Mexico border

The Democratic lawmakers also pressed on whether the Biden administration was, in effect, ceding federal authority to Abbott, who has been among the nation's leading critics of post-Trump immigration policies.

"The president has the ability to make a public statement of complete disagreement and disdain when loss of life of children, babies and others are (in play)," said U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee of Houston. "I think he'd have a lot of support (from my) fellow Texans."

The Hearst report set off a firestorm in Texas and in Washington. Democratic U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey said the actions cited in the trooper's email are "reprehensible" and "denigrates" the lives of migrants.

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters the actions were "abhorrent."

"It is despicable. It is dangerous," she said. "And we’re talking about the bedrock values of who we are as a country.”

Beto O'Rourke: 'Crickets' from Biden

While Jean-Pierre made no mention of federal authority to set immigration enforcement policies and procedures, former Democratic U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke of El Paso, who unsuccessfully challenged Abbott's reelection last year, did.

"There is one person who has the power to stop Abbott," O'Rourke said in a tweet. "Mr. President, we need you to act."

In an interview later, O'Rourke amplified his disappointment with President Joe Biden on immigration, saying he has heard only "crickets" from the White House on Abbott's actions at the border.

"The president, who has all the power in the world and constitutionally is vested with the authority to enforce our immigration laws and to manage our international boundary with Mexico, and his administration, as far as any of us can tell, is not doing a single thing," O'Rourke said. "And that would be bad enough on its own, but now that we know clearly that people are dying, he absolutely has to act, and he has to do that now. It is urgent."

Even border region activists who vehemently opposed the hard-line policies during the Trump administration and cheered Biden's early rollbacks said they are disappointed that the Democratic administration appears to be deferring to the Texas governor.

"It's pretty baffling to us," said Tricia Cortez, who runs the Rio Grande International Study Center in Laredo. "Because any governmental body — if this city or if a private rancher or if a company wanted to do anything like that in the river — you can't just do whatever you want. There are regulations and policies. It's a source of drinking water and an international boundary."

John C. Moritz covers Texas government and politics for the USA TODAY Network in Austin. Contact him at jmoritz@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @JohnnieMo and at JohnnieMo217 on Threads.