Convenience Big Store: Abbott launches PR blitz as Rio Grande buoys face key hearing

Abbott's final stand?

On the eve of a big court hearing that could force Texas to remove its buoy barrier in the Rio Grande, Gov. Greg Abbott was squeezing every last ounce of public relations out of them that he could.

In Eagle Pass, Abbott had four other Republican governors on a helicopter ride with him to see the buoys. Then he held a press conference with the governors not far from the location of the buoy barrier where each state leader took jabs at President Joe Biden over the border.

"Joe Biden is not doing his job," Abbott said with governors of Oklahoma, Nebraska, South Dakota and Iowa standing by him.

And just as he finished saying that, his campaign put out a fundraising letter to potential Republican donors touting the barriers and declaring he will not back down from the fight to secure the border.

All that comes before the big hearing on Tuesday morning in Austin where a judge will consider forcing Abbott to remove the buoys within 10 days while the federal lawsuit over them moves on. The U.S. Department of Justice has sued Texas, saying it violated a federal law that requires preapproval from the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers before putting barriers in navigable waterways.

Jeremy Wallace, Texas politics reporter

jeremy.wallace@houstonchronicle.com

Who's up, who's down

Up: Illinois.

State officials there confirmed to CBS News Chicago that they are covering the funeral and burial expenses for Jismary Alejandra Barboza González, the 3-year-old Colombian girl who died on one of the buses that Gov. Greg Abbott uses to ship migrants from the Texas border to places like Chicago. Texas officials confirmed the girl and her parents boarded the bus in Brownsville, but showed no signs of illness.

Down: Ronna McDaniel.

The Austin-native and chair of the National Republican Committee struck out already in putting together the first GOP presidential debate on Wednesday. With Politico reporting that former President Donald Trump will not attend, viewers will get a lot more Doug Burgum vs. Vivek Ramasawamy than most probably were hoping for.

What do you think? Hit reply and let me know.

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