Senator Asks Ag Commissioner to Pull Website

State Sen. José Rodríguez, D-El Paso, today asked Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples to take down the border website his office launched last week, protectyourtexasborder.com, saying it has become a “forum for promoting violence.”

Staples has said the site, which allows border ranchers and farmers to share stories, pictures and videos that document their daily struggles with drug cartels and undocumented immigrants, was created to draw attention to the perils they face.

But Rodríguez said he was concerned the site unfairly and inaccurately portrays the situation on the Texas-Mexico border.

“Although I agree that more should be done by the federal government to address border security, this website does nothing more than create a forum that has already been used to promote violence and hate,” Rodríguez wrote in a letter to Staples.

A report today in The Texas Tribune revealed some users of the site posted message suggesting that Texans take the laws into their own hands, including setting land mines and booby traps on farmland and using “hide-and shoot” tactics. Staples office has since added a web page to the site that informs users that the department has the right to remove posts.

Staples’ office was not immediately available to respond to Rodríguez's letter.