The Biden administration is sending 1,500 active-duty troops to the southern border as the number of illegal crossings surges in the lead-up to pandemic policy Title 42 ending next week, the Washington Examiner confirmed.
“At the request of the Department of Homeland Security, Secretary Austin approved a temporary Department of Defense (DoD) increase of an additional 1,500 military personnel to supplement U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) efforts on the U.S. Southwest Border,” Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder, Pentagon spokesman, said in a statement on Tuesday afternoon.
DHS AND STATE DEBUT PLAN TO SCREEN MIGRANTS AT OUTPOSTS IN CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA
“For 90 days, these 1,500 military personnel will fill critical capability gaps, such as ground-based detection and monitoring, data entry, and warehouse support, until CBP can address these needs through contracted support,” he added. “Military personnel will not directly participate in law enforcement activities. This deployment to the border is consistent with other forms of military support to DHS over many years.”
Soldiers will be armed, but only for self-defense purposes. Troops will not apprehend illegal immigrants but carry out administrative work to free up Border Patrol agents to be out in the field.
Ryder said during Tuesday’s press briefing that the troops will arrive as soon as May 10, one day before Title 42, which was invoked at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic and has allowed border authorities to expel immigrants more quickly, will expire. He said the service members deployed for this mission would come from the Army and the Marine Corps, though Ryder did not specify particular units.
The federal government is concerned about tens of thousands of immigrants camped out and traversing through Mexico who plan to cross on May 12, when they will no longer be subject to being immediately turned away.
Up to 18,000 people could be arrested at the southern border each day following the conclusion of Title 42 on May 11.
“Due to an anticipated increase in migration, DHS requested that the Department of Defense (DoD) augment the 2,500 military personnel currently providing support at the Southwest Border with an additional 1,500 personnel for a period of 90 days,” the DHS said in a statement.
Biden last approved 2,500 National Guard deployments from 25 states and U.S. territories last October. Troops are limited in what they can do on the border.
The Posse Comitatus Act of 1878 prevents U.S. active-duty military from enforcing domestic laws unless explicitly authorized by Congress. National Guard soldiers were exempt from that law, but because they were deployed under Title 10 active-duty orders, they were barred from enforcing federal law, including immigration laws.
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The administrations of former Presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump each ordered the National Guard to the southern border to improve border security.
The military has assisted DHS on the border every year since 2006.
