Trump praises Texas governor as border state clashes with Biden administration over immigration

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Former President Donald Trump lavished praise Saturday on Texas Gov. Greg Abbott for not allowing the Biden administration entry to remove razor wire in a popular corridor for migrants illegally entering the U.S. in an escalating feud over immigration.

In a speech focused overwhelmingly on border security, Trump said Texas should be given full support in its measures to deter migrants along the U.S.-Mexico border. The state is restricting the U.S. Border Patrol after the Supreme Court cleared the way for these federal agents to cut or remove the sharp metal barrier.

“When I’m president, instead of trying to send Texas a restraining order, I will send them reinforcements,” Trump told a crowd of supporters in Las Vegas, where he rallied on an indoor soccer field in a largely Latino neighborhood. “Instead of fighting border states, I will use every resource tool and authority of the U.S. president to defend the United States of America from this horrible invasion that is taking place right now.”

Trump largely avoided talking about a verdict delivered by a jury in a defamation case Friday, ordering him to pay an additional $83.3 million to columnist E. Jean Carroll, who he called a liar for accusing him of sexual assault.