AUSTIN, Texas — The state of Texas is offering to give over 1,400 acres of land near the U.S.-Mexico border to the incoming Trump administration to use for deportation facilities. 

What You Need To Know

  • In a letter to President-elect Donald Trump, Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham formally offered a 1,402-acre ranch to help assist in a mass deportation effort

  • The land, located in Starr County, was purchased by the Texas General Land Office on Oct. 23, 2024

  • Less than 24 hours after buying the land, Buckingham’s office granted a 1.45-mile long easement to allow the state’s border wall to be built across the land

  • Buckingham later spoke to Fox News to discuss her plan to gift the land, and she said she is “100% on board with the Trump administration’s pledge to get these criminals out of our country, and we are more than happy to offer our resources to facilitate those deportations of these violent criminals”

In a letter to President-elect Donald Trump, Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham formally offered a 1,402-acre ranch–located 35 miles west of McAllen, Texas–to help assist in a mass deportation effort.

“My office is fully prepared to enter into an agreement with the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or the United States Border Patrol to allow a facility to be built for the processing, detention, and coordination of the largest deportation of violent criminals in the nation’s history," the letter reads. 

The land, located in Starr County, was purchased by the Texas General Land Office on Oct. 23, 2024. Less than 24 hours after buying the land, Buckingham’s office granted a 1.45-mile long easement to allow the state’s border wall to be built across the land.

According to Buckingham’s letter, the previous owner of the ranch refused to allow a wall to be built on her property and “actively blocked law enforcement from accessing the property.”

“I am committed to using every available means at my disposal to gain complete operational security of our border,” the letter states. 

Buckingham later spoke to Fox News to discuss her plan to gift the land, and she said she is “100% on board with the Trump administration’s pledge to get these criminals out of our country, and we are more than happy to offer our resources to facilitate those deportations of these violent criminals.”

Throughout his campaign, Trump promised to conduct one of the nation’s largest mass deportations of undocumented immigrants in American history.

It is estimated that over 11 million undocumented immigrants currently live in the U.S., and any mass deportation operation would require a large amount of funding, manpower and resources. 

Trump previously suggested he would use the National Guard, and maybe even the active military, to target undocumented immigrants. 

Texas will likely play a crucial part in the enforcement of Trump’s immigration plans. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has already made border enforcement one of his top priorities over the past couple of years with his multibillion-dollar border security effort–Operation Lone Star.

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