Attorney General Ken Paxton secured a victory for President-elect Donald Trump’s border-security agenda during a hearing today before a federal judge. The hearing was called at Attorney General Paxton’s request to uncover potential legal violations committed by the Biden Administration after recent reports that segments of the border wall were auctioned off for pennies on the dollar.
The Biden Administration confirmed to the court today that it will agree to an order preventing the outgoing administration from disposing of any further border wall materials over the next 30 days—allowing President Trump to use those materials as he sees fit. This will be adopted as an order of the court, making it enforceable if any violations occur.
Additionally, the court stated that Texas is entitled to documentation proving that the Biden Administration has not violated an injunction secured by Attorney General Paxton in May of 2024 that required the Biden Administration to spend statutorily obligated funds on border wall construction after the federal government attempted to illegally redirect the money. If it is shown that the Biden Administration disposed of border wall materials purchased with funds subject to that injunction in violation of a court order—or that the Department of Justice made misrepresentations regarding the border materials that have been auctioned off—this would constitute unethical and sanctionable conduct, and the responsible parties could be held in contempt of court.
“We have successfully blocked the Biden Administration from disposing of any further border wall materials before President Trump takes office,” said Attorney General Paxton. “This follows our major victory forcing Biden to build the wall, and we will hold his Administration accountable for illegally subverting our Nation’s border security until their very last day in power, especially where their actions are clearly motivated by a desire to thwart President-elect Trump’s immigration agenda.”