By The White House
WHAT: President Donald J. Trump is authorizing the deployment of the National Guard to support the Border Patrol in its mission to protect our country and stop the stream of illegal immigration.
To give our Border Patrol agents the support they deserve, President Trump is authorizing the deployment of National Guard units to the southern border to aid their mission.
America’s Border Patrol agents work incredibly hard to do their jobs of enforcing our Nation’s immigration laws and protecting our national security.
These law enforcement personnel are tasked with securing thousands of miles of border, however, and often do not have the manpower or resources necessary to stem the tide of illegal immigration into the United States.
(Learn More about U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and its tremendously complex and important mission. As the nation’s largest law enforcement agency, CBP is responsible for securing our borders while facilitating lawful travel and trade. Courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection and YouTube)
Given the importance of secure borders to our national security, the National Guard, in coordination with governors, will remain in a support role until Congress takes the action necessary to close the loopholes undermining our border security efforts, including ending the practice of Catch and Release.
These law enforcement personnel are tasked with securing thousands of miles of border, however, and often do not have the manpower or resources necessary to stem the tide of illegal immigration into the United States.
This is not the first time in recent history that the National Guard has been deployed to the southern border.
- In 2012, President Barack Obama authorized the deployment of guardsmen to the border.
- President George W. Bush also authorized deployment of 6,000 guardsmen to the border as a part of Operation Jump Start, assisting in operations which resulted in the arrest of more than 173,000 illegal aliens, the rescue of 100 persons, and the seizure of more than 300,000 pounds of drugs.
(In an effort to boost national security, in May, President Barack Obama ordered 1,200 National Guard troops to deploy to the U.S. – Mexico border. As KRWG’s Jared Andersen reports about 75 of those troops are already on the ground in New Mexico. Courtesy of KRWGnews and YouTube. Posted on Sep 30, 2010)
Original post https://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/immigration/
DHS: To Secure the Border and Make America Safe Again, We Need to Deploy the National Guard
“We apprehend more than a thousand people a day – 300,000 a year – who violate our nation’s sovereignty by crossing our borders illegally. This must end.”
“Deploying the National Guard will serve as an immediate deterrent while dramatically enhancing operational control of the U.S. border.”
(President Donald Trump has directed officials to deploy the National Guard to the southern U.S. border as part of a push to curb illegal immigration according to Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen. Courtesy of Michael McIntee and YouTube. Posted on Apr 4, 2018)
The Problem:
Legal loopholes, asylum fraud, a massive court backlog, and drastically insufficient immigration enforcement resources encourage illegal immigration and threaten the security of our nation.
The result is that even apprehended illegal aliens are released and cannot be removed.
Asylum:
- Before 2013, approximately 1% of arriving aliens claimed credible fear (asylum).
- Now 1 out of 10 claim credible fear.
- Credible fear claims increased 1700% from 2008 to 2016.
- Now 1 out of 10 claim credible fear.
- Before 2011, over 90% of arriving aliens were single adult males.
- Today 40% are families and children.
- Before 2009, 90% of arriving aliens were Mexican nationals.
- Today nearly 50% are Central Americans.
Unaccompanied Alien Children (UAC) and Family Units:
- In FY17, 48,672 UACs were apprehended by CBP compared to 3,598 UACs that were removed.
- In FY17, 104,999 Family Units were apprehended by CBP compared to 2,605 that were removed in FY17.
- Thus far in FY18, 13,186 UACs were released into the interior of the United States – that’s in addition to the 42,146 UACs and 52,147 UACs who were released in FY17 and FY16 respectively, bringing the total number of UACs released from FY16 to date in excess of 107,000.
- Thus far in FY18, 39,984 Family Units have been apprehended by CBP.
Securing Our Borders:
- In coordination with governors, National Guard units will be deployed to our southern border.
- The deployment is designed to support ongoing efforts to mitigate the crisis on our border.
- The deployment will support federal law enforcement personnel, including Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
- The deployment is designed to support ongoing efforts to mitigate the crisis on our border.
- Federal immigration authorities will direct enforcement efforts.
The deployment’s duration will be determined by Congressional efforts to secure our southern border.
The National Guard of the United States
The National Guard of the United States, part of the reserve components of the United States Armed Forces, is a reserve military force, composed of National Guard military members or units of each state and the territories of Guam, of the Virgin Islands, and of Puerto Rico, and of the District of Columbia, for a total of 54 separate organizations.
All members of the National Guard of the United States are also members of the militia of the United States as defined by 10 U.S.C. § 246.
National Guard units are under the dual control of the state and the federal government.
The National Guard is a joint activity of the United States Department of Defense (DoD) composed of reserve components of the United States Army and the United States Air Force.
(Learn More about The National Guard. Courtesy of The National Guard and YouTube)
Statement by Attorney General Sessions on National Guard Deployment
“Earlier this week, media outlets reported that a so-called ‘migrant caravan’ was making its way through Mexico with the intent of illegally crossing the southern border of the United States,” explained Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
“The President was clear that this caravan needed to be stopped before it arrived at our southern border, and his efforts now appear to be successful.”
“But let me be clear as well: we will not accept the lawlessness of these types of efforts and those who choose to violate our laws, and those who conspire to assist others to violate our laws, will face criminal prosecution.”
“When I visited Nogales, Arizona, in April 2017, I announced my direction to federal prosecutors to prioritize the prosecution of all illegal entry, illegal reentry, and alien smuggling offenses.
(After touring the U.S.-Mexico border, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced new immigration enforcement measures in a speech in Nogales, Arizona. Courtesy of CBS News and YouTube. Posted on Apr 11, 2017)
“We have surged hundreds of immigration judges to our border over the last year. We hired new judges at the fastest pace ever.”
“We added performance metrics to ensure that these cases aren’t languishing in the courts while illegal aliens spend years living in our country without consequences.”
“We will have a more efficient and effective immigration court system that supplies due process.”
“As such, aliens who enter our country illegally should be aware that the government will use any and all lawful tools, including expedited removal and prompt immigration proceedings, to ensure that our immigration courts will not be burdened with cases that lack merit under the law.”
“But this will not be enough if Congress does not act to pass clear, fair, and effective legislation that ends the illegality and creates a system that serves the national interest is crucial at this time.
“It is essential for Congress to act.”
“The Department of Justice fully supports the efforts of the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security announced today to secure our border.”
