Abbott launches Operation Lone Star, deploying the Texas National Guard to the border

Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced Operation Lone Star less than two months into President Biden term, deploying Texas Department of Public Safety troopers and the Texas National Guard to the southern border to arrest smugglers and deter illegal crossings. Abbott framed the operation as a state response to what he called a federal failure to secure the border under the Biden administration. A March 2022 investigation by ProPublica, the Texas Tribune, and The Marshall Project found that DPS counted more than 2,000 arrests with no link to border security in Operation Lone Star totals, raising questions about accuracy of reported results. By 2024, Texas had spent over $10 billion on the operation, setting the political stage for SB4.