Texas Gov. Greg Abbott floats building a wall on the Oklahoma border

Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott has taken border demagoguery to a new level: he suggested building a wall between Texas and Oklahoma.

Abbott made the remarks at a Feb. 15 campaign event for Republican state House candidate Janis Holt.

“There are challenges that we face in this state that are sweeping across the country, including this radical woke left agenda,” Abbott said. “It’s crisscrossing the United States and even coming across the Red River. I’ll get around to talking about the border, but some people say, ‘Abbott you need to put a border wall on the border with Oklahoma.’”

The audience applauded Abbott’s idea.

Abbott has previously been accused of stoking a new Civil War. 

In July 2023, his administration installed a series of buffers in the Rio Grande river to deter migrants, including buoys wrapped with razor wire. The Biden administration sent federal Border Patrol agents to Texas to monitor the situation and provide humanitarian aid. Abbott then ordered the construction of a razor wire fence to block these agents from doing their jobs.

The Justice Department sued Texas. The U.S. Supreme Court ordered the state to comply with the federal government’s demands. Abbott has refused, claiming Texas has a constitutional right to defend itself. 

Twenty-five Republican governors signed onto a statement supporting Abbott in his standoff.

Abbott has since tried to fundraise off the spat.

An Abbott spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment for this story.