The Biden administration is preparing to deploy 1,500 active-duty troops to the U.S.-Mexico border ahead of the anticipated end of Title 42, a Trump-era public health policy that helped stem the flow of illegal immigrants into the United States.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin approved the deployment, according to Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder.
“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,” Ryder said in a statement.
“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,” his statement 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.”
The Department of Defense did not immediately respond to American Military News’ request for comment.
The announcement comes after Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) warned the Mexican cartels are preparing to flood the United States’ southern border with between 700,000 and one million illegal immigrants when Title 42 is lifted in an effort to overwhelm U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
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During an appearance on Steve Bannon’s War Room, Biggs said the CBP does not have enough resources or personnel to “keep them in detention and processing facilities.”
“When those facilities get full…they’re going to just take pictures. They’re not even going to do full on processing. They’re going to take pictures. If we’re lucky fingerprints, [but] probably not even that,” Biggs warned. “And then they’re going to release them right into the local communities along the border.”
“It will be unlike anything we’ve ever seen,” he added.
CBP encounters at the southwest border reached 2,378,944 by the end of FY2022, topping the previous year’s record-breaking total of 1,734,686. This year, the CBP has already recorded more than 1.2 million encounters.
Biggs said CBP officials are telling locals, “I’m sorry. You’re screwed.”
As millions of illegal immigrants walk into the United States with ease, the Biden administration continues to insist the border is closed.
“We do expect that encounters at our southern border will increase as smugglers are seeking to take advantage of this change and already are hard at work spreading disinformation that the border will be open after that. High encounters will place a strain on our entire system, including our dedicated and heroic workforce and our communities,” DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Thursday.
“Let me be clear: Our border is not open and will not be open after May 11.”
