The U.S. military is preparing to send about 1,000 additional active-duty troops to the border with Mexico, a U.S. official said, just two days after President Donald Trump signed an executive order on immigration.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, did not say when the troops would be deployed.
They would be joining the roughly 2,200 active-duty and thousands of National Guard military troops already on the US border with Mexico.
Trump Orders
During his first term, Trump ordered 5,200 troops to help secure the border with Mexico. Former President Joe Biden deployed active-duty troops to the border as well.
Trump’s Jan. 20 executive order instructed the Pentagon to send as many troops as necessary to obtain “complete operational control of the southern border of the United States.”
“Within 90 days, the heads of the Defense Department and Department of Homeland Security will need to recommend whether additional actions, including invoking the Insurrection Act of 1807, might be necessary,” it said.
The Insurrection Act of 1807 allows the U.S. president to deploy the military to suppress domestic insurrection.
Revoking Biden’s Orders
As an exception to the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878, which prohibits military forces being used for domestic law enforcement, the 1807 act has been used in the past to quell civil unrest. The last time was in 1992, when the acquittal of four Los Angeles police officers in the beating of Black motorist Rodney King led to deadly riots.
US President Donald Trump’s other policy shifts from the Biden administration include pardon of January 6 rioters, withdrawal from WHO, death penalty Expansion, federal workforce and inflation, recognition of only two genders, tariff Reviews, energy policies etc.
He revoked a total of 78 executive orders from the previous Biden administration, including rejoining the Paris Climate Agreement. This decision underscores his prioritization of energy independence and scepticism toward international climate commitments.
(with inputs from Reuters)
