President Donald Trump said he plans on “bringing out the military” to stop the thousands of people in the migrant caravan headed to our border.
Another report stated that Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis “is expected to sign deployment orders as soon as Thursday that could send 800 or more troops to the border.”
Trump has repeated threats to send the military to the border to defend it against the mostly Honduran migrants who continue to march to the border. The number of people within the caravan has fluctuated, but USA Today reported that the Mexican government has determined the number has fallen to 4,500 as people have either stopped or asked for asylum in Mexico:
Mexico’s Interior Ministry said immigration officials have received 1,699 asylum claims, while 495 Hondurans have asked to be returned to their country of origin. The Central American migrants come mostly from Honduras but also includes those from Nicaragua, El Salvador and Guatemala. The status of about 500 other migrants is unclear. United Nation officials estimated Monday there were more than 7,200 migrants in the caravan.
Trump spoke to USA Today on Wednesday:
How many troops was he prepared to send to the border?“As many as necessary,” he replied.Trump has pummeled Democrats for weeks on immigration, harping on a proposal raised by some in the liberal wing of the party to abolish Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Though the idea is unlikely to ever become law, Trump has used it to paint Democrats as soft on crime and border security.
He tweeted this morning:
I’ve written before that the Democrats had complete power from 2008-2010 and could have changed immigration laws then.
Three administration officials told CNN that Mattis and others are still working on ironing out the details on the troops:
The officials tell CNN final details are being worked out including where the troops will come from and their specific tasks.The troops will not engage in lethal operations to stop the migrants. Instead they are expected to provide fencing, wall materials and other technical support at several key points along the border where it is believed the migrants may try to cross.The troops will also provide tents and medical care for border authorities in those areas. The troops retain the right of self-defense, but border patrol officers will still be the ones physically stopping illegal migration, the officials said.
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