The National Guard deployment, tasked with helping Texas build its border wall, will be South Dakota’s fifth amid the border crisis.
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem has ordered the state’s National Guard troops to deploy to the southern border to help Texas deal with record-shattering waves of illegal immigration.
Ms. Noem, a Republican, said that 60 South Dakota National Guard soldiers will deploy to the U.S.-Mexico border later this spring, on a rolling basis over a period of three months.
“The border in a warzone, so we’re sending soldiers,” Ms. Noem said in a Feb. 20 statement.
South Dakota was the first state to deploy National Guard troops in response to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s call two-and-a-half years ago for help securing the border.
Ms. Noem said the National Guard troops will assist with construction of a border wall.
“These soldiers’ primary mission will be construction of a wall to stem the flow of illegal immigrants, drug cartels, and human trafficking into the United States of America,” she said.
The newly announced deployment will be South Dakota’s fifth since Mr. Abbott issued the call for help.
“Texas—with the support of America’s Governors—will fight to do the job Biden refuses to do,” Mr. Abbott said in a post on X, in which he noted that the U.S. Constitution gives states the right to “secure our borders against invasion.”
Amid a surge in illegal immigration, Mr. Abbott in September declared an “invasion” at the southern border. He then ordered the Texas National Guard and state law enforcement agencies to secure the border, including by setting up razor wire and marine barriers.
The Biden administration sued Texas, leading the U.S. Supreme Court to rule that federal agents could remove the razor wire.
It’s estimated that over 10 million illegal immigrants have crossed the border since President Joe Biden took office.
Texas Fights Back
Texas officially started building its own state-funded border wall in December 2021, when Mr. Abbott alleged that President Joe Biden “refuses to enforce laws passed by Congress to secure the border and enforce immigration laws” and so “Texas is stepping up to do the federal government’s job.”
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