🗳️ Texas Senate Advances Bill Requiring Voters to Prove Citizenship, Sparking Legal Concerns
🚨 DOJ Drops Lawsuit Against Southwest Key Over Migrant Child Abuse 🍳 Rep. Vicente Gonzalez Urges Trump to Approve Mexican Egg Imports Amid Soaring Prices 🚔 Two Men Arrested at Sarita Checkpoint
🗳️ Texas Senate Advances Bill Requiring Voters to Prove Citizenship, Sparking Legal Concerns
Natalia Contreras, Votebeat, and The Texas Tribune. The Texas Senate, with full Republican support, is moving forward with Senate Bill 16, which would require proof of citizenship to register and vote in state, local, and presidential elections. The bill targets new and existing voters who did not previously submit citizenship documents, potentially placing many in a restricted role.
Under the proposal, voters who fail to provide proof would be barred from voting in presidential elections and allowed to vote only for U.S. Senate and House races, an unconstitutional restriction in Arizona. Critics argue the bill could disproportionately impact Native, elderly, and homeless voters, while supporters claim it protects election integrity.
The Texas Attorney General’s office would be tasked with prosecuting any cases of alleged noncitizen voting, despite evidence showing such cases are rare. With Republicans controlling the legislature, the bill is expected to pass, setting the stage for potential legal challenges.
🚨 DOJ Drops Lawsuit Against Southwest Key Over Migrant Child Abuse Allegations
Valerie Gonzalez, Associated Press.- The Trump administration has dropped a federal lawsuit against Southwest Key Programs, the largest U.S. provider of migrant child shelters, over allegations of sexual abuse at its facilities. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) also announced it will no longer place children in Southwest Key shelters, citing ongoing concerns.
The lawsuit, filed in 2024 under the Biden administration, accused Southwest Key employees of sexually abusing and harassing unaccompanied minors between 2015 and 2023 in Texas, Arizona, and California. Incidents included rape, inappropriate touching, and soliciting sexual acts. One employee at Casa Franklin in El Paso allegedly abused three girls aged 5, 8, and 11.
Southwest Key has furloughed 5,000 employees after the federal funding freeze. Critics argue that dropping the lawsuit ignores accountability, while attorneys say affected children must seek alternative legal recourse. Despite two criminal indictments, the civil case dismissal means no further federal legal action is planned.
🌎 Immigrants Drive Population Growth in Major U.S. Urban Counties, Census Data Shows
Mike Schneider, AP.- Immigration fueled the population growth of major U.S. urban counties in 2024, preventing declines in the Houston, Miami, and Phoenix metro areas, according to new Census Bureau estimates. Without international migration, these urban centers would have seen zero net domestic growth or even population loss, as more U.S. residents moved out than in.
The New York metro area led the nation in population growth, with nearly 288,000 immigrants offsetting the exodus of 147,000 residents. Meanwhile, suburban counties in Texas, Florida, and Arizona saw the highest domestic migration gains, indicating a shift toward outer suburban living for current U.S. residents.
Experts highlight immigration as the key driver behind America’s fastest population growth in 23 years, as natural population increases (births minus deaths) hit historic lows. With deaths exceeding births in two-thirds of U.S. counties, demographers say immigration is critical to sustaining national growth.
🍳 Rep. Vicente Gonzalez Urges Trump to Approve Mexican Egg Imports Amid Soaring Prices
Francisco E. Jimenez, The Monitor.- U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (D-Brownsville) has called on the Trump administration to allow egg imports from Mexico to ease record-high prices affecting American consumers. In a letter to USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins, Gonzalez highlighted food security concerns in South Texas and across the country, where inflation has driven egg prices up 53% since last year.
The USDA projects a 41% increase in egg prices for 2025, with Texas already seeing $5.43 per dozen, higher than the $4.95 national average. Gonzalez pointed to Mexico’s stable egg supply and avian vaccination programs, arguing that reducing tariffs on Mexican agricultural imports—set to take effect April 2—could prevent further inflation and stabilize the U.S. market.
The lawmaker urged the administration to consider Mexico as a trading partner for eggs, warning that rising costs could severely impact consumers, restaurants, and supermarkets nationwide.
Key Facts:
📈 Egg prices in Texas hit $5.43 per dozen, up 53% from last year.
🥚 USDA forecasts a 41% price increase in 2025 due to supply constraints.
🇲🇽 Mexico is the U.S.’s largest trading partner, with $893.9 million in trade annually.
🔬 Mexico’s avian flu vaccination program keeps egg supply stable.
🚫 Gonzalez urges Trump to exempt Mexican agricultural imports from upcoming tariffs (April 2) to alleviate shortages and inflation.
🚔 Two Men Arrested at Sarita Checkpoint for Smuggling 15 Migrants in Hauled Trucks
Xavier Alvarez, The Monitor.- Border Patrol agents at the Sarita checkpoint arrested Juan Daniel Peña and Jose Cristian Cantu Jr. after discovering 15 migrants hidden inside two trucks being hauled on a trailer. The men now face federal charges for transporting individuals illegally present in the U.S.
At 2:45 a.m. Monday, a K-9 unit alerted agents to the concealed individuals inside a black and white Chevrolet truck being transported on a flatbed trailer pulled by a Chevrolet Silverado 2500. Agents sent the vehicle for secondary inspection, finding nine people inside the black truck and six inside the white truck.
Cantu later admitted he was offered $3,000 to transport migrants north after a stop in San Benito to load the trucks. One migrant identified Cantu in a lineup, confirming he ordered them into the vehicles before being arrested at the checkpoint. Peña declined to provide a statement.
Both suspects are set to appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jason B. Libby in Corpus Christi on Thursday for a preliminary hearing.
🚨 Brownsville Man Pleads Guilty in Violent Transmigrante Price-Fixing and Extortion Scheme
Mark Reagan, The Monitor.- Jose de Jesus Tapia Fernandez, 47, of Brownsville, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering in a violent price-fixing and extortion scheme targeting the transmigrante forwarding agency industry near Los Indios, Texas. He joins seven co-conspirators who also admitted guilt.
The scheme, led by Carlos Martinez, 38, of Mission, Texas, involved monopolizing the market, forcing competitors to pay into a "pool," and enforcing compliance through intimidation and violence. Extortion payments exceeded $9.5 million, with money laundering covering up illicit profits.
Authorities are still searching for three fugitives: Rigoberto Brown, Miguel Hipolito Caballero Aupart, and Diego Ceballos-Soto. Anyone with information should call HSI at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE.
Federal officials say the case highlights how criminal networks manipulate trade and exploit consumers, with defendants using threats and violence to control pricing.