Elected county judges in every county along the Texas-Mexico border have signed a letter to a top White House official urging the feds to better communicate their border wall plans with local communities.
The letter, sent April 21 to new Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, was signed by fourteen judges along the 1,300-mile border between the Lone Star State and its neighbor to the south.
“We, the undersigned County Judges, representing 100% of the contiguous Texas-Mexico border, write with respect and goodwill, and a sincere desire to serve as partners in securing our shared border,” the message begins.
The letter better communication from DHS after months of uncertainty caused by a lack of communication and drastic updates that appear overnight on the Customs and Border Patrol’s interactive map.
The Trump Administration’s border wall has appeared and disappeared from the state’s beloved Big Bend National Park multiple times on the map. Such drastic changes have appeared with no notice from federal officials.
On the rare occasion that a top federal immigration official did meet with local authorities in March, U.S. Border Patrol Big Bend Sector Patrol Chief Agent Lloyd Easterling reportedly stated that the border wall was no longer planned for the national park.
However, that was contradicted just a few weeks later when portions of physical border wall appeared once again in the park as depicted in the interactive map.
But since being called out for the changes, instead of more transparency, the interactive tool seems to have gone the opposite direction. As of press time, the online map isn’t showing up at all.
The constant shifts have left local landowners and public officials uncertain about what is being built and where, including how it will impact their homes, livelihoods and the natural environment.
In the letter, the judges call for early coordination going forward before any major infrastructure changes are made.
“As county judges, we sit at the intersection of federal policy and local impact. We know the terrain, the people and the realities of daily life along the border,” Hudspeth County Judge Joanna E. MacKenzie wrote in an op-ed published in the Austin American-Statesman. “That is why we are asking for a true partnership — one that reflects the differences across this region and includes local voices from the start. Strong border security and strong border communities are not competing priorities. They reinforce each other.”
In the letter, the judges requested:
- Consistent communication with border county judges
- Early coordination with local officials and landowners
- Flexibility in how border security is implemented across regions
- Protections for private land access, water resources, and agricultural operations
“Possibly for the first time in history, every one of those counties is speaking with one voice,” MacKenzie wrote. “Not in anger. Not in politics. But in partnership.”
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