Greg Abbott is standing up for Texas, borders, and sovereignty. He stood alone for about 24 hours.
But courage is contagious.
Let's remember back to 2020 for a minute. In Florida, Ron DeSantis stood up to Fauci, stood up to the CDC, stood up to the pressure from his own party and reopened Florida and simply handled Covid differently than everyone else. Other governors watched, they waited, they saw Desantis's success and, slowly but surely, they all began to follow Florida's lead. All it took was one moment of tremendous courage from one man and that's when leadership shone through.
We're seeing this happen again in Texas. This time it's Governor Greg Abbott.
This week, The Supreme Court ruled that the Biden Administration could tear down border construction built by Texas. Normally, Republicans would roll over and wait for the final SCOTUS ruling and simply accept their fate.
"We can't stand up to the courts! We have to let the legal process play out while the borders are overrun!"
Greg Abbott had other ideas.
James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and the other visionaries who wrote the U.S. Constitution foresaw that States should not be left to the mercy of a lawless president who does nothing to stop external threats like cartels smuggling millions of illegal immigrants across the border. That is why the Framers included both Article IV, § 4, which promises that the federal government "shall protect each [State] against invasion," and Article I, § 10, Clause 3, which acknowledges "the States' sovereign interest in protecting their borders."
Instead of backing down, Abbott doubled down.
He made it clear, in no uncertain terms, that Texas was going to secure the border. They would use the Texas National Guard and put up even more razor wire.
He asserted his state's authority and picked up the crown lying in the gutter.
Then we all waited to see what would happen.
Within the next 24 hours, Republican governors from across the country began to proudly proclaim their support of Texas against the federal government's overreach and unconstitutional border destruction.
I don't know how all of this will end. I don't know if every Republican governor putting out a statement will stand by it when push comes to shove.
But I do know that the courage of one man, Greg Abbott, was enough to give courage to the leaders of 24 other states.
This is how a movement is built. On the courage of individuals who are not afraid to do what's right.
God Bless Texas, and God Bless Greg Abbott.
