A growing number of red-leaning states have answered the call to provide National Guard troops to secure the U.S.-Mexican border from migrant hordes, giving arms and men to patrol the nearly 2,000 mile-long expanse which separates the two vastly different nations.
As the border enforcement deals with the flood of migrants which has ensued from the expiration of Title 42 on May 11, several Republican-led states have contributed troops to crack down on drug-related crime and stem the flow of illegal immigrants through the border.
In total, 13 non-border states have pledged to provide troops to secure the southern border: Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia.
Of these, by far the greatest contribution in terms of manpower is that of Florida. Gov. Ron DeSantis has directed 800 National Guardsmen to the Mexican border and in total has contributed more than 1,100 assets and resources to the effort.
“The impacts of Biden’s Border Crisis are felt by communities across the nation, and the federal government’s abdication of duty undermines the sovereignty of our country and the rule of law,” DeSantis said in a statement last month. “At my direction, state agencies including law enforcement and the Florida National Guard are being deployed to Texas, with assets including personnel, boats and planes. While Biden ignores the crisis he created, Florida stands ready to help Texas respond to this crisis.”
Some of these National Guardsmen have already arrived. Florida’s troops are expected to stay at the border for 30 days with the possibility of extension.
“President Biden’s failure at our southern border puts the entire country at risk. States must now step up where the President has failed to repel illegals, fight the cartels, and stop human and drug trafficking,” said Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who ordered around 80 troops to the border.
Other states have given more modest contributions or are in the early stages of planning their deployment of Guard troops to the border.
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