The Supreme Court lifted an injunction on Monday, allowing the Trump administration to resume border wall construction across the remote Big Bend region of Texas.
In an unsigned 8–1 decision, the high court lifted an injunction that had been issued October 2 by U.S. District Judge Kathleen Cardone, allowing construction to resume while litigation moves forward. The court wrote that the law reflects a clear preference for expeditious border construction,
outweighing environmental and recreational harms asserted by challengers.
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was the lone dissenter.
CBP is pausing all construction activity in Big Bend National Park while I visit and conduct a personal, on-the-ground evaluation. CBP is firmly committed to protecting America, and that includes our national treasures like Big Bend National Park (BBNP). We know the current and… pic.twitter.com/UkmzvTluwH
The legal dispute centers on Section 102 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996. The statute grants the Department of Homeland Security secretary authority to waive environmental and conservation laws to ensure fast construction of border infrastructure.
Under former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and her successor, Markwayne Mullin, the agency issued a total of three waivers for project areas in the Big Bend sector, bypassing dozens of federal statutes.
When we filed in the Supreme Court, I called the district court’s order halting wall construction “as unprecedented as it is flawed.” We just won 8-1. https://t.co/3AVnLQfe3Y
James Percival, general counsel for the Department of Homeland Security, welcomed the decision in a post on X, calling the lower court’s order as unprecedented as it is flawed
and noting the lopsided vote count.
U.S. Senator John Cornyn of Texas voiced opposition to the wall in an op-ed, and U.S. Representative Greg Casar remarked that Democrats, Republicans, Texans of all backgrounds all agree: Leave Big Bend alone.
Brandon Herrera, a Republican running to represent the Big Bend area in Congress, also stated his opposition to any construction disturbing the natural landscape and threatening tourism jobs.
God already built a wall through Big Bend — it's called the Chisos Mountains. We don't need to give billions of our tax dollars to out of state vendors. We don't need to desecrate this sacred land. We don't need this useless, disgraceful, corrupt Big Bend border wall. pic.twitter.com/ktGmC1ay3b
Opponents pointed to federal data showing the sector records some of the lowest apprehension rates along the entire southern border, accounting for just 1.3 percent of total border apprehensions in fiscal 2025. In Big Bend National Park, apprehensions accounted for 0.045 percent of the national total. Plaintiffs in the lawsuit argued that the 1996 law only permits limited waivers in areas of pervasive illegal entry, a designation contested by the rugged geography.
The administration countered that leaving a gap in the region would act as a dangerous magnet for cartels and other bad actors,
warning that unsealed border sections would become funnel points for unlawful crossings as other routes close off. President Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” which passed in July 2025, earmarked $46.5 billion for fencing and obstacles along the southern boundary.
Environmental groups sharply criticized the ruling. Laiken Jordahl, national public lands advocate at the Center for Biological Diversity, described the outcome as a horrific decision clearing the way to bulldoze pristine desert and dynamite canyon walls.
The lawsuit challenging the construction was filed by the Center for Biological Diversity, the Friends of the Ruidosa Church, and a local river guide and landowner.
The corrupt and far-right Supreme Court just gave Trump the OK to rip up Big Bend with a border wall. No one will be safer or freer. It’s just going to destroy the nature and wildlife that we love at Big Bend. Democrats, Republicans, Texans of all backgrounds all agree: leave… https://t.co/UitRsXIaha
U.S. District Judge Kathleen Cardone had previously invalidated the waivers on October 2, concluding that the Homeland Security secretary lacked the authority to issue sweeping exemptions outside areas of high illegal entry. Following the Supreme Court’s action, the litigation moves forward while the administration proceeds with its infrastructure plans.
We are outraged by the Supreme Court’s decision allowing Trump’s border wall construction to resume in @BigBendNPS. This destructive project threatens irreplaceable wildlife habitat, sacred cultural sites, and one of America’s most treasured landscapes. Big Bend deserves… https://t.co/EKRu47zf4H