Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed a series of border security bills this week, including one that designates Mexican drug cartels as terrorist organizations.
Abbott, who previously designated Mexican drug cartels as terrorist groups through an executive order, signed a bill into law that formalizes the label and increases penalties for drug-related crimes.
“The Texas Legislature has stepped up to make sure we continue to robustly respond to President Biden’s growing border crisis, including allocating $5.1 billion for border security,” Abbott said in a statement. “Today, I am signing six bills from this year’s regular session to ensure that Texas can continue to do even more to stop illegal immigration at our southern border and provide new tools to the brave men and women along the southern border to protect Texans and Americans from the chaos and crisis of the border.”
