Mexico–United States border

Opposition from private landowners in Texas' Big Bend region continues to slow the Trump administration's $46 billion border wall project, part of a plan to build barriers from the Pacific to the Gulf of Mexico. The administration aims to spend $7.5 billion fortifying roughly 500 miles through Big Bend despite historically low illegal crossings there and natural barriers like cliffs and desert terrain. CBP says it has built over 260 miles of new barrier nationwide since Trump returned to office, but a federal judge recently paused Big Bend construction after landowners sued, arguing Homeland Security exceeded its authority by waiving environmental and other protections; the government has asked the judge to lift the order while it appeals.

Many landowners are refusing to let surveyors onto their property, protesting at county meetings, pressuring local officials not to assist contractors, and preparing for eminent domain fights; the Justice Department says about 70 disputes have been referred for legal action nationwide, with 50 resolved and none going to trial, while CBP says it has reached agreements with dozens of other Big Bend landowners. Opposition spans party lines, with Republican ranchers, a county sheriff and Trump voters questioning the project's necessity. Critics frame the dispute as a broader test of federal power over private property, while CBP maintains the infrastructure is needed to prevent a shift in illegal crossings to the area.

A federal judge has temporarily halted construction of the Trump administration's border wall in Texas' Big Bend region, a win for landowners who have resisted the $46 billion national project. Plaintiffs argued the administration bypassed regulations in pushing forward; the government has asked the judge to set aside her order while it appeals. Customs and Border Protection says it has built more than 260 miles of barrier under the second Trump administration and plans to spend $7.5 billion fortifying roughly 500 miles of border in Big Bend, where construction began in September.

Ranchers and other property owners have refused survey access, protested at county meetings, lobbied officials against aiding contractors, and are preparing for eminent domain fights. Opposition spans party lines, including a Republican sheriff and Trump voters who say rugged terrain and low crossing numbers make the wall unnecessary there. CBP says it continues pursuing voluntary agreements and will compensate landowners regardless of how access is obtained, while also retaining eminent domain attorneys in anticipation of disputes. The standoff has become a broader test of federal authority over private land.

Democrat Xavier Becerra and Republican Steve Hilton met on CNN for a debate ahead of California's Nov. 3 gubernatorial election, moderated by Jake Tapper and Dana Bash. The exchange was widely panned as lackluster, with both candidates drawing criticism for weak performances. Becerra, the former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, repeated claims that he has "fought all my life to defend immigrants," a record critics dispute given his quiet stance during the Obama administration's deportation policies. He also accused Hilton of wanting to "welcome immigrants who look like you, but deport immigrants who look like me," a remark Hilton called "disgraceful."

Hilton, a former Fox News host who received Donald Trump's primary endorsement, avoided directly answering whether he'd direct state law enforcement to assist federal immigration enforcement. Polling from the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies shows Becerra with a substantial lead and more favorable overall ratings than Hilton heading into the final weeks of the race.

Butler County, Ohio Sheriff Richard Jones, a longtime advocate for stricter immigration enforcement who has partnered with ICE for years, says the Trump administration mishandled the early stages of its second-term immigration crackdown. In a WCPO interview tied to his new book, "They Call Me Jonesy," Jones said the administration "went about it in the wrong way" initially but has since shifted to a "softer approach" after personnel changes, which he called an improvement.

Jones' jail holds federal immigration detainees under a 287(g) agreement with ICE, and he said roughly 450 people were held on immigration matters, with about 6,000 deported from Butler County over the prior 18-19 months. He has faced criticism, including from Ohio lawmakers, over jail conditions, which he disputes. Jones argues the immigration system is "broke," calls for expanded legal immigration paired with tougher enforcement against those in the country illegally, and says bipartisan compromise is needed. He credits immigration as a key factor in Trump's 2024 win.

Austin city leaders and other elected officials are calling for an independent investigation after an ICE agent shot a Venezuelan man Sunday afternoon during a vehicle pursuit while he was making a DoorDash delivery. The man, identified by his attorney Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch as 28-year-old Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, says ICE officers sideswiped his car twice without warning before he was shot in the back of the neck. He was released from a hospital into ICE custody with the bullet still lodged near his spine, held at the Pearsall detention center without pain medication, and briefly returned to the hospital Monday night after complaints of untreated pain. DHS says he had a final order of removal after entering under a Biden-era asylum program later ended by Trump; his attorneys say the order stemmed from a missed hearing notice sent to an old address. Federal sources say ICE had been conducting targeted enforcement using license plate checks when they identified his vehicle.

Austin officials say the city's own EMS was requested by Austin Police, not ICE, though bystander video shows an ICE agent also asking whether an ambulance was en route; federal sources say the agent has been placed on administrative leave, standard practice in such incidents. Homeland Security Investigations and the FBI are leading the probe, with Austin Police and Texas Rangers investigating separately. Mayor Kirk Watson, Police Chief Lisa Davis, DA Jose Garza, and Congressman Greg Casar are demanding transparency and local involvement, noting this is one of at least 28 such shootings by federal immigration agents since 2024.

Six landowners and the nonprofit Conserve Big Bend, representing roughly 230 additional landowners across five counties, have sued the Department of Homeland Security, CBP, DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin and CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott in Washington, D.C. federal court to block border wall construction in the Big Bend region of Texas. The suit is part of a broader $46 billion effort to build 30-foot steel bollard walls, vehicle barriers and surveillance infrastructure along the southern border, and seeks an injunction covering the entire region, including barriers inside Big Bend National Park.

Plaintiffs argue DHS unlawfully issued waivers designating Big Bend an area of "high illegal entry," despite the sector accounting for under 1.5% of southwest border apprehensions over five years, and claim landowners' Fifth Amendment due process rights are being violated. Opposition has grown since February, when eminent domain letters went out, drawing bipartisan pushback from sheriffs, officials, tour operators and ranchers who warn the wall would cut off Rio Grande water access, harm tourism, wildlife and sacred sites. Over $7 billion has already been awarded for Big Bend Sector wall contracts.

Landowners, ranchers, and the nonprofit Conserve Big Bend have filed a lawsuit seeking to halt the Trump administration's plans to build border wall and related infrastructure through the Big Bend region of Texas. The suit, backed by dozens of area residents, challenges a $46 billion federal effort to fortify roughly 2,000 miles of the U.S.-Mexico border with steel bollard walls, vehicle barriers, and surveillance technology.

Plaintiffs argue the Department of Homeland Security is misusing its waiver authority, which is meant for areas of "high illegal entry." They cite CBP data showing Big Bend's roughly 500 miles of border account for only about 1% of arrests, and note illegal crossings have dropped further under Trump. The case follows outcry over construction activity spotted near Big Bend National Park in August, which prompted a temporary pause by CBP. Native American groups warn of damage to religious sites, environmentalists cite flooding and wildlife migration concerns, and landowners fear losing access to the Rio Grande for irrigation and livestock. The lawsuit adds to a growing list of legal and political challenges facing the administration's border wall program in Texas.

Twin Cities faith communities remain entangled in legal disputes stemming from last winter's federal immigration surge in Minnesota. In one case, University Baptist Church in Minneapolis and allied Baptist groups are asking a federal judge to find that Homeland Security violated a February injunction protecting houses of worship, after court documents revealed undercover agents surveilled the church's gym multiple times while investigating a martial arts instructor accused of training protesters to obstruct arrests. The government maintains the operation targeted violence against federal officers, not immigration enforcement.

In a separate case, more than three dozen people, including former CNN journalist Don Lemon, face federal civil rights charges for disrupting a Sunday service at St. Paul's Cities Church, where a pastor also worked for ICE's local field office. Protesters chanted over the killing of Renee Good, shot by an ICE officer in January. Defendants have filed motions citing selective prosecution, with hearings set for late October. Faith leaders across the region describe lingering fear, heightened security, and exhaustion months after the crackdown.