Back during the campaign President Donald Trump said what millions of Americans have been thinking for a long time: It’s time to send in the troops to defend our southern border.
At a campaign event in Reno, Nevada, President Trump reiterated his hardline views in a speech calling for a "clean up" of the country and, without detailing how, promising to shift "massive portions" of law enforcement to handle illegal aliens at the border, including by recalling soldiers currently stationed overseas.
ABC News reported Trump dedicated nearly 20 minutes of his 80-minute speech talking about border security and immigration, repeating his oft proven point that "drug dealers," "gang members," "criminals" and people from mental institutions are invading our country.
Central to his plan to stop the illegal alien invasion is a pledge to militarize the border. This is not only good policy, but also politics as polling shows the public sharply disapproved of Biden's handling of the issue, which contributed mightily to Kamala Harris’s defeat.
One of the main reasons public support for Harris cratered is that voters no longer bought the lie that those crossing our border illegally are poor refugees who just want to work and make a better life for their families.
As our friend Sam Faddis explained in “Whoever All These Chinese Are - They Aren't Refugees” posted in AND Magazine:
Vast numbers of Chinese have shown up at our southern border demanding asylum in the last few years. They have stood out because they are mostly military-aged men and appear at the border relatively well-dressed and in good order. This has raised legitimate concerns about who they really are and what they intend. It also raises another very important question.
If you have the resources to make this trip and arrive well-dressed, well-fed, and well groomed – are you really a refugee to whom the American people should extend a helping hand and charity? Why are we feeding, housing, and sheltering folks who seem to have resources beyond those of many American citizens?
In the face of this existential threat Trump’s plan to militarize the border makes sense because it is consistent with what was the policy of the United States for most of our history.
Up through World War II and into the Cold War America had substantial military assets deployed at or near the border. Just look at the names of border cities and towns: Fort Bliss and Fort Sam Houston in Texas are still active-duty military posts. Camp Shannon in New Mexico which was built by the U.S. Army for border patrols was operational from 1917 – 1922 at Hachita, New Mexico. It became a subpost of Camp Furlong in 1920. Camp Furlong was built by the U.S. Army to patrol the Mexican border. Known as the Post at Columbus, it was attacked by Pancho Villa's forces in March 1916.
Camp Cochise, Camp Don Luis, Camp San Bernardino Ranch, Camp Douglas, Camp Bisbee and others in Arizona which were built by the U.S. Army were all built as border patrol posts and were operational through World War I and the upheaval of the Mexican Revolution. Camp Newell was a temporary border patrol station built during the 1911 Mexican Crisis that became a permanent U.S. Army border post, and Fort Huachuca, Arizona is still an active-duty military post and home to the Army Intelligence Center and School.
Indeed, from the Coastal Artillery at Fort Baldwin at Sabino Head on Maine’s Kennebec River to dusty posts in the Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California Southwest, the American border and shoreline are dotted with place names confirming that defending the border at the border was the job of the Army.
The point of this history lesson is that for the vast majority of our country’s history the military didn’t do its work overseas – its number one job was to defend the United States and its borders. It is a fantasy of the Cold War era that all the threats to our national sovereignty can be stopped by strategic bombers and nuclear missiles, as opposed to soldiers on patrol at our borders.
When the United States defeated Saddam Hussein’s forces in Operation Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom, we took tens of thousands of prisoners who were captured, secured, housed and fed by the United States military. The notion that the U.S. military is incapable of handling the army of illegal aliens approaching our Southern border in a humane manner is not only an insult to the professionalism and capability of our military officers and troops, but also rebutted by the plain evidence of our national history.
We don’t have to meet the invading army of illegal aliens with tanks to assure that they do not pose a threat to our national security or overwhelm our border patrol and immigration system. If we want the invasion through our southern border stopped, it seems a strong military presence is now the only option. We urge President Donald Trump to put remilitarizing our southern border at the top of his Day One orders.
George Rasley is editor of Richard Viguerie's ConservativeHQ.com and is a veteran of over 300 political campaigns. A member of American MENSA, he served on the staff of Vice President Dan Quayle, as Director of Policy and Communication for former Congressman Adam Putnam (FL-12) then Vice Chairman of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee's Subcommittee on National Security and Foreign Affairs, and as spokesman for retired Rep. Mac Thornberry, a member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and former Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee.
2024 Election
Troops on the border
Illegal immigration
Department of Homeland Security
border security
Biden administration
Alejandro Mayorkas
Chinese immigrants
military aged men
militarize the border
Donald Trump administration
Twin .50's every one hundred yards the entire length of the border. Have people there to make sure that they're loaded and in good working order. Have them remote controlled by drones using TV and infrared monitoring. Interlocking fields of fire to make sure that nothing gets through. On the Mexican side of the border a minefield like two miles deep. If the Mexicans whine and cry about it cut off all foreign trade and aid with them. I predict zero border crossings within a week.