Republican South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem announced on Friday that she’s headed to the U.S. southern border to show solidarity with Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott amid his standoff with the federal government over efforts to stop illegal border crossings.
“I am on my way to the warzone at the Southern Border to stand with Texas, [Mr. Abbott], and the National Guard,” Ms. Noem said in a post on the X social media platform on Friday morning. “Biden is failing, so we will continue to do everything we can to help secure the border.”
Ms. Noem’s border visit comes after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Monday that the federal government could remove razor-wire and other barriers the Texas state government had placed along the state’s border with Mexico to deter illegal crossings.
Despite the Supreme Court ruling, Mr. Abbott has ordered even more razor-wire barriers to be installed along the border. Numerous Republican political leaders, in turn, have voiced their support for the Texas governor’s efforts.
Ms. Noem was one of 25 Republican governors who signed a letter on Thursday voicing support for the Texas governor. The Republican governors further accused President Joe Biden of “refusing to enforce immigration laws already on the books” and “illegally allowing mass parole across America of migrants who entered our country illegally.”
Border Visit Comes as Trump Calls for National Guard Deployments
On Thursday, former President Donald Trump called on the various Republican governors to deploy their National Guard troops to Texas to help “prevent the entry of Illegals, and to remove them back across the Border.”
Ms. Noem, an ally of President Trump, has previously deployed South Dakota National Guard troops to assist Texas border control efforts and told Fox News on Thursday night that she will continue to deploy her state’s troops to the border.
“A lot of people talk and a lot of people criticize. We take action,” Ms. Noem told Fox News. “And right now, I’m so proud of what Texas is doing to defend itself. We’ll be right there beside them. We’ll do everything we can to make sure this invasion stops.”
Ms. Noem was asked, during a separate appearance on Fox News on Thursday, to weigh in on the Texas governor’s decision to keep installing razor wire despite the Supreme Court ruling. Ms. Noem cheered the decision and suggested her state could continue to support the effort by sending more razor wire his way.
“Governor Abbott has done the exact right thing,” Ms. Noem said. “I’ll drive him more razor wire from South Dakota if I have to for him to do his job.”
Along with urging National Guard deployments to support Mr. Abbott, the former president also urged Republican lawmakers not to vote for a more than $100 billion supplemental spending request from President Biden unless the deal includes strict border security provisions.
“We need a Strong, Powerful, and essentially ‘PERFECT’ Border and, unless we get that, we are better off not making a Deal,” President Trump wrote in a post on his Truth social media account on Thursday.