NEWS: Congressman Greg Casar Responds to DOJ’s Lawsuit Against Texas’ New ‘Show Me Your Papers’ Law

AUSTIN, Texas – Today, Congressman Greg Casar (D-Texas) released the following statement in response to the U.S. Department of Justice filing a lawsuit against the state of Texas on Texas Senate Bill 4 (SB 4). The state of Texas has refused to refrain from enforcing the unconstitutional anti-immigrant law, which will go into effect on March 5, 2024. 

“This new ‘Show Me Your Papers’ law is wrong and unconstitutional,” said Congressman Greg Casar (D-Texas). “I’m getting calls from constituents because they are scared that their families will be torn apart or caged by Abbott. We need to keep families together, not hunt down folks who look like immigrants.”

Casar has spoken directly with U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland about this unconstitutional and anti-immigrant law. SB 4 is preempted under the Constitution’s Supremacy Clause and conflicts with various provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

Casar previously joined Joaquin Castro (D-Texas) and others in calling on the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to block the new “Show Me Your Papers” law before it takes effect. 

Background on Texas’ New “Show Me Your Papers” Law (SB4/HB4):

• SB 4 creates a state version of the federal illegal entry offense, in the hopes that state and local law enforcement will arrest, detain, and ultimately deport people and those assumed to be migrants.
• SB 4 contains a myriad of constitutional problems. Notably, it requires two state-level entities–the arresting officer and the magistrate–to make status determinations, a power reserved for the federal government alone. 
• The process for seeking asylum under SB 4 is unclear, even to the bill’s authors. Under federal law, a person has a right to present themselves on an asylum claim at any location, not just at a point of entry. Federal authorities then interview them to determine eligibility. SB 4 would require that this same person be arrested, forced through a state criminal proceeding, and either jailed or deported before they would have the opportunity to talk with a federal immigration officer.  
• The bill text and other documents are available here.

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Congressman Greg Casar represents Texas’s 35th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives, which runs down I-35 from East Austin to Hays County to the West Side of San Antonio.  A labor organizer and son of Mexican immigrants, Casar serves as the Whip of the Congressional Progressive Caucus for the 118th Congress. He also serves on the Committee on Oversight and Accountability and the Committee on Agriculture.