Secretary of Defense James Mattis is set to order hundreds troops to the southern border to head off the caravan of migrants from Central America weaving their way up to America. President Trump had explicitly threatened to send the military if Mexico and other countries refused to stop the invading group.
Administration officials have confirmed the order with multiple media outlets, and troops could start rolling out immediately.
Reports indicate that over 2,100 National Guard troops have already been deployed to assist the Department of Homeland Security.
The caravan has swelled to over 7,000 people, and recently stormed the border gates that separate Guatemala and Mexico. Officials reveal that the mob of potential illegal immigrants still rests in the southern portion of Mexico, roughly 1,000 miles away from any U.S. entry point.
Defense Secretary Mattis is expected to sign deployment orders that could send 800 or more troops to the border to help border patrol authorities stop a caravan of migrants moving through Mexico to enter the US, according to administration officials https://t.co/Pz8HmXY7qn pic.twitter.com/LiNmBUYsJI
— CNN (@CNN) October 25, 2018
Trump warned he would send the military
President Trump has been warning the caravan that military enforcement of the border would be an option to stop the pending onslaught of illegal entries into the United States.
He cautioned that anyone caught illegally entering the United States would be “arrested and detained, prior to being sent back to their country.”
Trump then explained that the military would be invoked to stop this “national (emergency).”
Sadly, it looks like Mexico’s Police and Military are unable to stop the Caravan heading to the Southern Border of the United States. Criminals and unknown Middle Easterners are mixed in. I have alerted Border Patrol and Military that this is a National Emergy. Must change laws!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 22, 2018
Thursday morning, President Trump chastised Democrats and their weak immigration policies, saying, “I am bringing out the military for this National Emergency. They will be stopped!”
CNN reports that while the troops retain the right to self-defense should the need arise, they “will not engage in lethal operations to stop the migrants.”
Trump previously sought military security at the border
This past April, President Trump vowed to use the military to guard our border until a wall could be built.
“We are going to be guarding our border with our military,” he announced, revealing ongoing discussions with Defense Secretary Mattis. “That’s a big step.”
President Trump says he wants to use the military to secure the border with Mexico until the U.S. can build a wall there. The president says he is discussing border security options with Defense Secretary James Mattis https://t.co/dA9lmgKWpI pic.twitter.com/J55wsiO5yf
— CBS News (@CBSNews) April 4, 2018
As President Trump uses the military to try and defend the southern border and stop the current caravan from crossing the southern border, another group is forming in El Salvador.
Reporters on the ground have indicated members of the first caravan contain people from Bangladesh, and that it is funded by leftist groups and socialist Venezuela.
Officials worry the El Salvador group might have MS-13 gang members infiltrating their ranks.
The defiant mob has vowed to let nothing stop their march to the border, military or otherwise.
“We are going to the United States,” one shouted as they broke through the Mexico gates. “Nobody is going to stop us!”
Secretary Mattis might have a different take on that.
