Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) has come under fire after videos surfaced on social media showing the floating border barrier made of buoys with “circular saw blades” on them.
Democratic Texas Reps. Sylvia Garcia and Joaquin Castro posted video footage of the 1,000-foot buoy barrier in the Rio Grande river, which Abbott revealed plans for in early June. The Department of Justice issued a lawsuit against Abbott on July 24 over the floating barrier, according to the Associated Press.
NPR confirmed in an article that there were “circular saw blades” on the buoys, after Texas journalist David Martin Davies; host of the Eagle Pass talk show, Jessie Fuentes, and Democratic Texas Rep. Vikki Goodwin joined a “fact-finding kayak group” to see the buoy barrier.
“Farther down river, we reach the orange buoy barrier. It stretches out for more than three football fields in the middle of the Rio Grande,” Davies says of the expedition. “Swimming under the barrier is not an option. It’s anchored to the shallow water with thick cables and concrete bases, and there are serrated metal plates that look like circular saw blades between each buoy to deter anyone from climbing over it.”
Garcia expressed dismay at the circular saw blades found between the buoys in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“Appalled by the ongoing cruel and inhumane tactics employed by” Abbott, she wrote in her post. “The situation’s reality is unsettling as these buoys’ true danger and brutality come to light. We must stop this NOW!”
Appalled by the ongoing cruel and inhumane tactics employed by @GovAbbott at the Texas border. The situation's reality is unsettling as these buoys' true danger and brutality come to light. We must stop this NOW! pic.twitter.com/XPc4C8Tnl0
— Rep. Sylvia Garcia (@RepSylviaGarcia) August 8, 2023
Castro shared a similar post on X, in which he uploaded a video of the buoy barrier he had seen.
“Everyone needs to see what I saw in Eagle Pass today,” Castro wrote. “Clothing stuck on razor wire where families got trapped. Chainsaw devices in the middle of buoys. Land seized from US citizens.”
Everyone needs to see what I saw in Eagle Pass today.
— Joaquin Castro (@JoaquinCastrotx) August 8, 2023
Clothing stuck on razor wire where families got trapped. Chainsaw devices in the middle of buoys. Land seized from US citizens.
Operation Lone Star is barbaric — and @GovAbbott is making border communities collateral damage. pic.twitter.com/PzKyZGWfds
While many others, including 2024 Democratic presidential candidate Marianne Williamson, expressed the usage of such blades was “disgusting, immoral and illegal,” others pointed out why it was necessary.
Disgusting, immoral and illegal. @GregAbbott_TX https://t.co/4njuZI2tSY
— Marianne Williamson (@marwilliamson) August 9, 2023
Julio Rosas, a senior writer with Townhall, pointed out he didn’t “see Democrats rush down to Eagle Pass last year” before the construction of the buoy barrier, when “migrants were drowning almost everyday.”
“Democrats only care about the border crisis when there are attempts to stop and deter illegal immigration,” Rosas wrote.
I didn’t see Democrats rush down to Eagle Pass last year when, before the buoys, migrants were drowning almost everyday. Democrats only care about the border crisis when there are attempts to stop and deter illegal immigration. https://t.co/XfGtHzW8gQ
— Julio Rosas (@Julio_Rosas11) August 8, 2023
Associate Producer and writer with Fox News, Kyle Becker, questioned why the United States was “the only country in the world that” was “not allowed to defend its borders?”
“Got any good answer for me, Democrats?” Becker questioned.
Why is America the only country in the world that is not allowed to defend its borders?
— Kyle Becker (@kylenabecker) August 9, 2023
Got any good answer for me, Democrats? https://t.co/ODvvaQHiCF
“Not to sound like a ‘radical right-wing extremist,’ but our tactics to keep people from illegally crossing our border needs to become more aggressive,” conservative political commentator Xaviaer DuRousseau wrote.
DuRousseau pointed out how people would never have the “comfortability to illegally enter Syria.”
“So why do we allow illegal aliens to infiltrate our country?” DuRousseau asked.
Not to sound like a “radical right-wing extremist,” but our tactics to keep people from illegally crossing our border needs to become more aggressive.
— Xaviaer DuRousseau (@XAVIAERD) August 9, 2023
You would never have the comfortability to illegally enter Syria, so why do we allow illegal aliens to infiltrate our country? https://t.co/6aw4rF91bA
The focus on the circular saw blades on the buoys comes days after two dead bodies were found in the Rio Grande river. One of the bodies was found stuck between the lines of buoys, while the other was found in the vicinity of the buoy barrier, according to ABC News.