Abbott claims DHS isn’t building a wall or fence in Big Bend National Park

Audio By Carbonatix

(The Center Square) – After months of not commenting on federal border wall and barrier construction in the Big Bend region of Texas, including barrier construction underway in Big Bend National Park, Gov. Greg Abbott broke his silence on Monday. 

Responding to a reporter question at a campaign event, he said he spoke with Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin over the weekend. Mullin “committed to me that [DHS] will not be building a wall or a fence in Big Bend National Park. They understand that there are other tools to successfully secure that part of the border through technology, personnel and other means,” he said. 

He also said Mullin understood that there are other areas along Texas’ border “where there are more illegal crossings where a wall is needed other than in Big Bend.”

Abbott said U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott's announcement on Monday that CBP was halting construction in BBNP occurred after the two men talked over the weekend. 

“With regard to the [CBP] announcement of the pause, that seems to be a consequence of my conversation with the secretary this weekend,” he said. He also said Scott would be “gathering information about the way forward to ensure that Big Ben is going to be secure from people trying to cross illegally without undermining the beauty of the national park.”

State Rep. Gina Hinojas, D-Austin, who is challenging Abbott for governor, said, “Greg Abbott knew the Big Bend border wall was happening for months, yet he said nothing when the bulldozers desecrated Santa Elena Canyon. But now that the election is just a few months away, he's trying to gaslight voters into thinking he's defending our land.”

Scott halted BBNP construction after widespread bipartisan outrage has been expressed and thousands of Texans have called DHS, CBP, Abbott and Congress to stop federal construction in BBNP. Last week, U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, was the first in Congress from Texas to call on Mullin to halt construction in BBNP. He also raised concerns about waivers Mullin signed that ignore federal and state law designed to protect historical, archeological, Native American, and ecological landmarks in Texas. 

Seven former BBNP superintendents, with a combined 259 years of National Park Service experience, have repeatedly called on Mullin to rescind dozens of waivers that will have devastating consequences and won’t result in border security, they argue, The Center Square reported. Mullin didn’t respond.

Cornyn urged Mullin to listen to Texas’ stakeholders’ concerns and for DHS officials to meet with Texans. U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, also called for the same action to be taken, including with state legislators. 

The superintendents said they question “whether any statements put out by DHS or CBP officials can be relied upon.”

CBP has consistently changed border barrier plans on a smart wall map posted online. Last October, Big Bend region construction plans were marked by dark green and orange lines, indicating “technology only” and “vehicle barrier system,” respectively. At the time, no red lines were anywhere on the map, including in Texas. Red lines indicate where a 30-foot bollard wall will be built, The Center Square reported.

Nearly every month since then, the map changes, with different lines indicating different types of barriers being built. CBP has also taken down contract information previously posted on usspending.gov. detailing $7.5 billion worth of contracts for border security in the Big Bend region. Previous links to the contracts now state, “404 not found.”

In a June screenshot of the Smart Wall plan for the Big Bend region, including BBNP, lime green, dark green and orange lines are visible, indicating “technology only, (no wall or road),” technology and patrol road and vehicle barrier systems are to be built.  

They’ve since changed again. 

As of August 18, a red line covers most of the Texas border stretching northwest from Big Bend State Ranch Park to El Paso through Hudspeth, Jeff Davis and Presidio counties. In eastern Brewster County, beginning near Reagan Canyon, orange lines indicate a continuous vehicle barrier system to be built in Brewster, Terrell and Val Verde counties. 

Terrell County Sheriff Thad Cleveland has questioned the plan, arguing it isn’t effective or necessary. He’s long advocated for virtual barriers and advanced technological systems, The Center Square first reported. 

CBP contractors began bulldozing through recreational areas in BBNP, including by Santa Elena Canyon and Mariscal Canyon where no illegal entries have been reported and it’s extremely difficult to access. They also began bulldozing on state land, prompting the Texas General Land Office to threaten to sue, The Center Square reported.  

What CBP isn’t telling the general public, Laiken Jorhahl with the Center for Biological Diversity argues, is that any barrier built near Mariscal Canyon will require extensive dynamite blasting. The center is one of many groups that sued to halt construction in BBNP. It filed an emergency injunction in federal court on Monday.  

Cleveland called on Scott to reconsider construction near Mariscal Canyon, especially since no illegal traffic occurs there. The canyon boundary, a 1,500-foot vertical cliff above the Rio Grande River, acts as a natural deterrent to any illegal crossing. “This area isn't used by smugglers and if it was, we could certainly deploy technology on the ground and in the air to protect it,” he said. 

Cleveland, a former Border Patrol agent who used to work with Scott, told The Center Square he’s meeting with him and others on Tuesday to address a range of concerns.