Did you know this year is a leap year? That means there are 29 days in February, along with Valentine’s Day, and winter break. So after you have planned your schedules for this month, make sure to check out this week’s KICs. This week includes Iran remaining inactive in a fatal attack, President Biden being able to shut down the border, an armed man shot during a standoff in Cobb County, a man arrested after stabbing his roommates, and Texas Governor continuing to protect the Texas border.
World – Ministry says Iran remains inactive in fatal attack on U.S. base
After three American service workers died on a base in Jordan, the Iranian Foreign Ministry denied that they were involved with these fatalities. The tragedy occurred on Sunday, while their response was this Monday.
President Biden is trying to determine the best counter to this attack. Officials know that the strike was carried out by Iranian aggressive groups located in Syria and Iraq. Yet, the United States is not looking for conflict with this country.
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It is known that the groups take orders from Iran executives. However, they are trained and not discouraged to commit these crimes.
National – Biden can shut down the border, DHS officials are upset
At a campaign event in South Carolina last weekend, President Joe Biden said both parties are making progress on a bill that includes new border security measures. This bill would also give Biden the emergency authority to shut down the border until it can get under control. Biden said he would shut down the border the day the bill is signed into law, if necessary.
Mexico has agreed to take back 30,000 migrants per month, but many times that number are crossing into the U.S. monthly. Department of Homeland Security officials say that in order to shut down the border and block asylum-seekers, the U.S. would need the cooperation of Mexico to take back 8,000 or more migrants per day. Another DHS official said some Customs and Border Protection officers are upset that Biden would talk about shutting down the border because it would lead to more problems, not a solution.
This shutting down of the border would cause chaos with Mexico and weakened parts of the border. Former DHS officials believe this talk of shutting down the border is only for political reasons to gain votes for the 2024 election and is not based on logic.
State – Armed man shot by police officer during standoff in Cobb County
An armed man was shot by a police officer after firing a shot despite the Cobb County Police Department’s order that he put down his gun. Residents on Columns Drive called 911 to report a man walking down the River Plantation subdivision firing a gun.
Once officers made it to the scene, they confronted him near the front door of one of the condos located along the Chattahoochee River and ordered him to drop the weapon. According to Cobb County officials, not only did he refuse to give up his gun, the man then fired a shot. In response, an officer shot him.
The man was brought to Kennestone Hospital. Officials have not revealed the armed man’s identity or condition.
Local – Man stabbed his roommates
On January 20, the police showed up to the scene of two victims on Pine Knott Road in Fayetteville, Georgia. The victims showed multiple stab wounds.
The neighbors called the police at 7:40 p.m. on Tuesday night and the victims were transferred to a nearby hospital. The man who stabbed both of the victims was caught by the Fayette County Sheriff’s Department and is now in custody. That night, the man was identified as Thomas Boykin.
Boykin, age 51, has been charged with aggravated assault and battery. The officers have reported that the investigation is on-going.
Politics – Questions surround standoff between Texas Gov. Greg Abbot and Supreme Court
Texas Gov. Greg Abbot’s actions to continue to defend his state’s border despite the 5-4 Supreme Court order passed. The order says U.S. Border Patrol is allowed to remove any razor wire that Texas has set up along the U.S. border with Mexico.
Technically, Abbot is not ignoring the Supreme Court, as the order does not require him to stop putting up the razor wire. However, the federal government cannot be sanctioned by courts if it attempts to remove the wire. What Abbot is doing is provoking conflict over how far states are able to go to supplant federal law enforcement authority. This is a point the Supreme Court has not yet addressed, and until they do there will be this unseemly prospect of a physical standoff between state and federal officials in Texas.
There is confusion about who is really in charge of immigration policy in the U.S. It is difficult to confidently say it should belong to the Supreme Court, because the Constitution allows for the federal government to regulate naturalization, which the Supreme Court has long acknowledged to include the ability to regulate immigration and border security.