Tag: Military Deployments

February 24, 2021

February 26, 2021

A GAO report found that the Pentagon did not fully evaluate costs and effects on readiness associated with deploying troops to the US-Mexico border under Trump. The DOD developed rough, unreliable cost estimates and failed to fully disclose some costs, such as benefits for National Guardsmen and installation. DHS also disclosed that they would like troops to remain at the border for at least three years, though the mission is only approved through fiscal year 2021.

Tags: Military Deployments

December 31, 2020

January 29, 2021

The number of U.S. troops deployed to the border to assist CBP is down from a peak of 5,000 to 3,600, according to a Pentagon spokesman. The drop has coincided with the expected end of Pentagon contributions to the border wall.

Tags: Border and Migration Politics, Military Deployments, U.S. Policy

Evaluation of the United States Military Support of Department of Homeland Security Southern Border Security Operations Under Title 10 Authority

August 18, 2020

Published by the Department of Defense Inspector-General on August 18, 2020.

A detailed look at the funding, management, and legal authority for the Trump administration’s deployments of military personnel to the U.S.-Mexico border. (Link at dodig.mil)

Tags: Budget, Civil-Military Relations, Military Deployments, Oversight

June 25, 2020

The Pentagon confirms that the Defense Department intends to keep as many as 4,000 troops at the U.S.-Mexico border through October despite no signs of an actual crisis. Most military backup will come from the Nationa Guard, which cannot engage in law enforcement activities but will help monitor the frontier, provide logistics, and offer transport to CBP personnel. There are currently approximately 5,500 troops deployed to the border.

Tags: Civil-Military Relations, Military Deployments

April 28, 2020

U.S. defense officials state that the Pentagon is actively considering reducing the number of troops at the southern border by September and replacing them with members of the National Guard. This would bring the deployment in line with previous military operations at the border by the Bush and Obama administrations. There are approximately 5,000 active duty troops deployed to the border.

Tags: Civil-Military Relations, Military Deployments

COVID-19 Reveals the Full Trump Immigration Agenda, and Puts Lives Directly at Risk

April 13, 2020

Published by Brújula Ciudadana on April 13, 2020.

An analysis by me, in English and Spanish, of how the Trump administration’s coronavirus measures have not only put its whole immigration agenda in place, but are also threatening to spread the virus.

Tags: Asylum, Deportation, Detention, Fencing, Military Deployments, Public Health

The Trump Administration’s COVID-19 Response at the Border Puts Us All At Risk

April 6, 2020

Published by WOLA on April 6, 2020.

Some of what the Trump administration is implementing at the border risks worsening the COVID-19 pandemic at home and exporting it to other countries.

Tags: Asylum, Deportation, Detention, Expulsions, Fencing, Mexico crackdown, Military Deployments, Public Health

Disinformation and Spin: Trump Administration Deploys Troops to Border, Paints Asylum Seekers and Attorneys as Threat

March 10, 2020

Published by Human Rights First on March 10, 2020.

A memo about the Trump administration’s sending of an additional 160 military personnel to the border, in response to a 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that threatened to halt the “Remain in Mexico” program.

Tags: Asylum, Military Deployments, Remain in Mexico