Krause, who is the chairman of the Texas House General Investigating Committee, asked the attorney general “whether the federal government has failed to uphold its obligations to protect Texas from invasion under Article IV, Section 4 of the U.S. Constitution, and whether Texas has the sovereign power to defend itself from invasion.”
The constitutional provision in question states, “The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion; and on Application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic Violence.”
Referencing “the surge of illegal aliens coming into Texas along the Mexico border,” he said in the March 28 letter that the Arizona attorney general recently contended illegal immigration is an invasion and that Krause “found the Arizona opinion’s analysis and conclusions compelling.”
The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced this month that Title 42 expulsions of illegal aliens will end on May 23, spurring estimates of up to 18,000 illegal crossings per day. Title 42 of the U.S. Code was originally invoked by President Trump to protect the public from the COVID-19 pandemic, a policy that the Biden administration has continued.
Gov. Greg Abbott’s GOP primary opponents, who he defeated soundly, pressured the governor to do more to combat illegal immigration, calling it an invasion as the new administration relaxed President Trump’s measures against illegal crossings.
More recently, Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX-21) called on Abbott to “stop treading lightly” around federal court decisions and shut down either the border or Interstate 35 until the federal government enacts stronger measures.
“The bottom line is you can’t win this prosecuting trespassing crimes,” Roy told The Texan.
“What would we do if we were a stand-alone sovereign nation? That’s what we should do. Muster your own force. Sit down at the river and turn people away, and if you’re not willing to do that or if that doesn’t go far enough, then shut down I-35 and tell the rest of the country to kiss our a– until the border is secure.”
In a press conference last week, Abbott pointed to the role of Congress and contended it is the federal government’s responsibility to enforce immigration law.
Krause is competing in a runoff for Tarrant County district attorney against Judge Phil Sorrells, who received Trump’s endorsement.
Though Krause had initially launched a campaign to challenge Paxton in the Republican primary, he withdrew from the race to run for Tarrant County district attorney instead. Paxton is currently fighting for the nomination in a runoff with Land Commissioner George P. Bush.
A copy of Krause’s letter to Paxton can be found below.
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Hayden Sparks
Hayden Sparks is a senior reporter for The Texan and a lifelong resident of the Lone Star State. He has coached competitive speech and debate and has been involved in politics since a young age. One of Hayden's favorite quotes is by Sam Houston: "Texas has yet to learn submission to any oppression, come from what source it may."
