Chris Russo Testifies in Favor of Banning Foreign Ownership of Texas Land
Texans for Strong Borders President Chris Russo testified in favor of House Bill 17. This legislation is meant protect Texas land from being owned by hostile foreign entities.
During his testimony, Russo emphasized the national security threat posed by foreign control over American resources, saying, “Protecting Texas land from foreign ownership by entities tied to adversarial nations is a national security imperative and vital to our sovereignty.”
HB 17 would help defend Texas’ critical infrastructure, natural resources, and even food supply from foreign influence. Russo warned that if hostile governments are allowed to purchase land, they could gain dangerous leverage over Americans. The bill includes tough financial and criminal penalties for violators.
While Texans for Strong Borders supports HB 17, Russo also recommended amendments to strengthen the bill. First, he suggested adding restrictions for citizens of hostile foreign nations in addition to those “domiciled” in them. He also advocated for restrictions on land purchases to include all foreign entities and individuals, not just those from currently designated adversarial nations.
Highlighting the issue’s widespread support, Russo pointed out that over 95% of Texas Republican primary voters backed restrictions on foreign land ownership, with recent polling showing 76% of all Texas voters agree.
Federal Judge Halts Trump’s Revocation of Temporary Protected Status for Venezuelans
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is taking action to revoke Temporary Protection Status (TPS) for 350,000 Venezuelan foreign nationals, fulfilling President Trump’s promise to enforce immigration law.
While immigrants who come to America with TPS have entered legally, the initial designation lasts 6-18 months. The system is intended to give temporary status to foreigners fleeing their country due to temporary circumstances like a hurricane. Once the country’s issue is resolved, the TPS should be revoked.
On Monday, U.S. district court Judge Edward Chen of California halted President Trump’s revocation of TPS following a lawsuit led by Democrat New York Attorney General Letitia James.
Unfortunately, the ruling highlighted the problems with the TPS program, stating that in the program’s 35 year history, this status has never been vacated, calling into question how “temporary” the protected status is in actuality.
Border Czar Tom Homan stated that Trump is making decisions based on the rule of law, while these “activist judges are making decisions based on opinion.” He went on to clarify that Temporary Protection Status is meant to be just that – temporary. Yet, thousands of immigrants end up staying for decades.
Trump’s order would reverse the Biden administration’s efforts to extend temporary protections for Venezuelan nations that have been in place since 2021. The courts maintain that revoking TPS would put the immigrants at risk of deportation back to Venezuela, which is designated a “Level 4 Do Not Travel” country.
Under the Biden administration, the TPS program was expanded to include more foreigners from Afghanistan, Cameroon, Haiti, Ukraine, Venezuela, and other countries. However, the largest number (600,000) of foreigners living in America under TPS are from Venezuela.