Washington:

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to block a Republican-backed Texas law that would have allowed state law enforcement authorities to arrest people suspected of illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border, rejecting a request from President Joe Biden’s administration.

The government asked a judge to freeze a judicial order allowing the Texas law to take effect while a U.S. government challenge to the regulation proceeds in lower courts. The government believes the law interferes with the U.S. government’s power to regulate immigration and violates the U.S. Constitution and federal law.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed the law, known as SB 4, in December, authorizing state law enforcement to arrest people suspected of entering the United States illegally, giving local officials powers long granted to the U.S. government.

Abbott said the law was needed because of Biden’s failure to enforce federal laws that criminalize illegal entry or re-entry. “Biden’s willful inaction has left Texas to fend for itself,” he said at a press conference on December 18.

The Democratic president has drawn sharp criticism from Republicans over his handling of record numbers of immigrants caught illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border during his presidency. Abbott and other Republicans, the party’s candidate challenging Biden in the Nov. 5 U.S. election, said Biden should preserve the restrictive policies of former President Donald Trump.

Texas law makes it a crime to illegally enter or re-enter Texas, with penalties ranging from 180 days in jail to 20 years in prison. Under the bill, Texas magistrates would be required to order migrants to return to Mexico, and those who refused to comply could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison.

The Justice Department filed a lawsuit in January to block the measure, which was scheduled to take effect on March 5. Lawyers for the Biden administration argued that the measure violated federal law and constitutional provisions, gave the U.S. government the power to regulate commerce with foreign countries and between states, and conflicted with a 2012 Supreme Court precedent.

Texas-based U.S. District Judge David Ezra sided with the administration on Feb. 29, agreeing to initially block Texas officials from enforcing the law, saying the law “threatens the U.S. The fundamental idea that immigration must be regulated with one voice.”

But the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals put a hold on Ezra’s ruling that would have allowed the Texas law to go into effect on March 10, prompting the government to file an emergency request to the Supreme Court.

Judge Samuel Alito, who handles certain emergency matters in cases involving Texas and other states, halted the 5th Circuit’s ruling on March 4. The law comes into force, thus giving the Supreme Court more time to consider the matter.

Texas has taken a series of measures under Operation Lone Star to stop people crossing the border illegally, including deploying the National Guard to the border, blocking migrants with hexagonal wire fences and installing floating barriers along a stretch of the Rio Grande.

In February, Republicans blocked a bipartisan Senate deal that would have strengthened border security and tightened immigration laws after Trump urged members of his party to reject the deal. Biden said the bill’s failure should be blamed on Republican lawmakers who caved to political pressure from Trump, who “thought it was politically bad for him.”

An analysis of exit polls conducted by Edison Research after the early March primary vote showed many voters were concerned about the situation at the border. Many called it their top voting issue. A Reuters/Ipsos poll showed that as of February 28, Biden’s public approval rating was 37%.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)