Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. threw support behind Texas' defiance of the Supreme Court of the United States' (SCOTUS) Monday ruling in favor of the Biden administration's legal ability to remove razor wire placed at the state's southern border.
Kennedy, who previously was a Democratic presidential candidate until late last year, expressed support for the Lone Star state in a Thursday X post.
"Texas is right," Kennedy wrote. "Biden's failure to secure the border leaves states no choice but to take matters into their own hands."
Kennedy vowed to end the humanitarian crisis "once and for all" if elected President.
"I will secure the border and destroy the business model of the drug cartels," he continued. "A country without borders is not a country at all."
Kennedy is notably one of the only significant non-Republicans expressing support for Texas.
On Wednesday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott released a statement declaring the state's right to defend of its southern border.
The Texas governor cited Article IV, § 4, of the Constitution, which notes the federal government "shall protect each [State] against invasion." Abbott also cited Article I, § 10, Clause 3, which acknowledges "the States' sovereign interest in protecting their borders."
"Under President Biden's lawless border policies, more than 6 million illegal immigrants have crossed our southern border in just 3 years," Abbott's statement continued. "That is more than the population of 33 different States in this country. This illegal refusal to protect the States has inflicted unprecedented harm on the People all across the United States."
"The failure of the Biden Administration to fulfill the duties imposed by Article IV, § 4 has triggered Article I, § 10, Clause 3, which reserves to this State the right of self-defense," Abbott asserted. "For these reasons, I have already declared an invasion under Article I, § 10, Clause 3 to invoke Texas's constitutional authority to defend and protect itself. That authority is the supreme law of the land and supersedes any federal statutes to the contrary."
A number of Republican governors threw support behind Abbott and offered assistance in Texas' efforts to curb illegal border crossings.
Former President Donald Trump, who is currently the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination, issued a statement late Thursday encouraging all "willing" states to deploy their national guards to the Lone Star state to "prevent the entry of illegals" and send them back into Mexico.
"When I was President, we had the most secure Border in History," Trump wrote in a Truth Social post. "Joe Biden has surrendered our border, and is aiding and abetting a massive Invasion of millions of Illegal Migrants into the United States."
Trump noted Biden was fighting to "tie the hands" of Abbott and the state of Texas instead of protecting the country from an "onslaught" of illegal immigration.
"In the face of this National Security, Public Safety, and Public Health Catastrophe, Texas has rightly invoked the Invasion Clause of the Constitution, and must be given full support to repel the Invasion," he continued.
"We encourage all willing States to deploy their guards to Texas to prevent the entry of Illegals, and to remove them back across the Border," Trump wrote. "All Americans should support the commonsense measures by Texas authorities to protect the Safety, Security, and Sovereignty of Texas, and of the American people."
"When I am President, on Day One, instead of fighting Texas, I will work hand in hand with Governor Abbott and other Border States to Stop the Invasion, Seal the Border, and Rapidly Begin the Largest Domestic Deportation Operation in History," he concluded. "Those Biden has let in should not get comfortable because they will be going home."
