Supreme Court allows Big Bend wall construction

The Supreme Court on Nov. 9 lifted a Texas judge’s order blocking the Trump administration from building border roads and barriers through the remote Big Bend region, including Big Bend National Park, while a legal challenge continues. The unsigned ruling said the judge lacked authority to halt the project; Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was the sole public dissenter. The administration says the barriers are needed to secure the border and has used federal waivers to bypass environmental and conservation laws, arguing that the region’s terrain and security concerns justify construction. Challengers—including an environmental group, a local river guide and a group seeking to preserve a historic church—say the project threatens irreplaceable habitats and cultural resources, and argue the area has among the lowest migrant apprehension rates on the southern border.