Mexico has issued a warning to a federal court in the United States, stating that if its judges allow a contentious immigration law introduced in Texas to go into effect, the two countries will encounter “substantial tension” that would have far-reaching ramifications for the relationship between the United States and Mexico. Mexico’s legal representatives stated that relations with the United States will be strained in a friend-of-the-court brief that was submitted to the 5th United States Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday.
“Enforcement of SB 4 would inappropriately burden the uniform and predictable sovereign-to-sovereign relations between Mexico and the United States, by criminalizing the unauthorized entry of noncitizens into Texas from outside the county and creating diverging removal requirements between and among individual states and the national government,” they wrote in the brief. According to the attorneys who testified before the court, the implementation of Senate Bill 4 would also interfere with Mexico’s freedom to decide its own rules on entry into its territory, impair collaboration between the United States and Mexico on a legal migration framework and border management, and impede trade between the United States and Mexico.
The measure, which was signed into law by Republican Governor Greg Abbott in December, makes it a state crime to enter Texas unlawfully and gives state judges the authority to order the deportation of immigrants. In general, the federal government is responsible for the enforcement of immigration laws in the United States. While it is weighing the larger matter of whether or not the law violates the Constitution of the United States of America, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals is currently examining whether or not to enable Texas to enforce Senate Bill 4. The law was put back on hold by a panel of three judges at the appeals court late on Tuesday, after the Supreme Court had earlier that day made it possible for it to go into effect for a limited time period.
The brief that was submitted by Mexico is an example of what is formally known as an amicus brief. Amicus briefs are submitted by non-parties in order to provide the court with information and experience regarding a pre-existing case. The choice about whether or not to permit amicus briefs is left up to the discretion of the court. It’s possible that some amici will submit their papers in support of a specific party, while others will do so in support of neither party. Mexico has given its support to those who are challenging the law, which includes the administration of Vice President Joe Biden. Its legal representatives stated in the brief that was submitted on Thursday that the law, if it were to be permitted to go into effect, “will be applied in a discriminatory manner.”
According to statements made by Mexican Foreign Minister Alicia Barcena earlier on Thursday, the eleven consulates of Mexico located in the state of Texas have been given the mandate to administer protection and guidance, as well as to make legal assistance accessible to any Mexican nationals who are located anywhere in the state and who “starts to have a problem.” According to Barcena, “This law is deeply unconstitutional,” and he said that immigration matters in the United States fall under the jurisdiction of the federal government, just like they do in Mexico.
