Recognizing that article I, section 10 of the United States Constitution explicitly reserves to the States the sovereign power to repel an invasion and defend their citizenry from the overwhelming and "imminent danger" posed by paramilitary, narco-terrorist cartels, terrorists and criminal actors who seized control of our southern border.
H. Res. 50 is a non-binding House resolution introduced January 16, 2025. It asserts that Article I, Section 10 of the U.S. Constitution reserves to the states the sovereign power to repel an invasion and defend their citizenry from what it characterizes as imminent danger posed by paramilitary, narco-terrorist cartels, terrorists, and other criminal actors at the southern border. The resolution presents a series of factual findings about border conditions (apprehensions, crime, drug trafficking, and costs to border states) and condemns the Biden administration for what it calls failures to protect states and to faithfully execute the laws. It declares that border states have the unilateral authority to defend themselves against invasion or imminent danger. Because this is a resolution, not a bill that creates or funds new law, it does not authorize action, appropriate money, or set new legal requirements. Rather, it is a political statement intended to frame the issue and express the House’s view on constitutional rights and federal responsibility in border security. While it signals strong support for state-led responses to border challenges, it does not by itself change policy or empower new actions.
Key Points
- 1Restates that, according to the resolution, Article I, Section 10 reserves to states the sovereign right to exclude and defend against what it calls an invasion or imminent danger.
- 2Finds that 2021–2024 border conditions constituted invasion or imminent danger from paramilitary narco-terrorist cartels, terrorists, and criminals, giving states sovereign unilateral authority to defend themselves under the cited constitutional provision.
- 3Finds that the federal government failed to protect border states and to “ensure domestic tranquility,” provide for the common defense, and execute the laws, citing Article IV, Section 4 and general federal duties.
- 4Specifically criticizes the Biden administration for not upholding its oath, failing to faithfully execute laws, and for policies the resolution argues worsened border conditions (e.g., measures that allegedly increased illegal immigration and weakened border controls).
- 5Declares that border states (notably Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California) have the unilateral authority to defend themselves against invasion or imminent danger from cartels and other criminal actors.