AUSTIN (Texas) A federal judge on Tuesday stopped Texas from allowing state troopers in Texas to stop migrants' vehicles. He feared that the immigrants may spread COVID-19, as new cases and concerns are increasing at the U.S.-Mexico frontier.The temporary order issued by U.S. District Court Judge Kathleen Cardone, El Paso is a victory for the Biden government. It was issued after it had been warned that Republican Gov. Greg Abbott's plan will create more problems amid the high summer border crossings in Texas, particularly in the Rio Grande Valley which one U.S. official described as the epicenter of the current surge.As a sign of growing pressure, Abbott's hardline immigration policies to detain border crossers and build a barrier were rejected by local officials. This week has seen an increase in COVID-19 cases and stretched capacity at refuges for migrants.Cardone stated that Abbott's directive would only increase the spread of COVID-19.Abbott's office didn't immediately respond to the ruling.The Biden administration, like Texas raises concerns about the more contagious Delta variant. Large numbers of noncitizens continue to arrive at Texas' southern border. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) renewed its emergency powers Monday to allow federal authorities the ability to expel families from the border. This is in order to prevent the spread of coronavirus.The Justice Department sued Texas and accused Abbott of possibly worsening COVID-19's spread. It stated in court filings, that impeding migration of migrants would prolong detention of unaccompanied children at increasingly crowded facilities.Hidalgo County Judge Richard Cortez is a Democrat and the highest elected official in Rio Grande Valley's largest county. He stated Tuesday that about 8% of migrants who were tested for COVID-19 are usually positive. According to state health statistics, that number now stands at 16%. This is roughly the same as Texas' overall positivity rate which is 17%.Continue the storyIt is not improving. Cortez said that it is getting worse as he defends his local disaster order.Critics accuse Abbott, who is running for a third term in 2022 of trying to shift blame for Texas' rapidly rising COVID-19 numbers. He also rejects calls for the reinstatement of mask mandates and other pandemic restrictions. Texas reported over 11,000 new cases and exceeded 7,000 virus-infected patients in the state on Tuesday.Abbott had last week authorized Texas to increase the presence of troopers at the border to stop any vehicle suspected of transporting migrants. Troopers can then reroute or impounded vehicles back to their origin point. The directive to troopers has been criticized by civil rights groups as well as immigration advocates for allowing for racial profiling.Border crossings are often slow in the summer heat, which can be sometimes deadly and oppressive. U.S. authorities announced Monday that they had likely picked up 19,000 children unaccompanied in July. This is more than the March record of 18,877. According to David Shahoulian (assistant secretary for border- and immigration policy at Department of Homeland Security), the June total was 15,253. The largest number was in the Rio Grande Valley.The total number of U.S. authorities stopping migrants crossing the border at 210,000 in July was an increase from the June 188,829 and the highest figure in over 20 years. However, the numbers are not directly comparable as many migrants cross multiple times under Title 42, a pandemic-related prohibition. It is named after a 1944 law on public health.Monday's announcement by the CDC stated that the ban will remain in effect until the director has determined that there is no danger of COVID-19 being introduced into the United States from non-citizens.
