Pentagon Plans to Send Hundreds of Troops to Border

President Trump on Thursday again declared the situation at the US-Mexico border a "national emergency" and promised to get the military involved. Now it appears the Pentagon is preparing to do just that. Defense chief James Mattis is expected to sign an order authorizing at least 800 troops to head to the border, reports the AP. It wasn't immediately clear whether they'd be active-duty troops or members of the National Guard, or what their specific duties would be, reports CNN. But the best guess is that the troops would help shore up fencing and other barriers along parts of the border deemed vulnerable, rather than directly engaging with migrants attempting to cross illegally&

The development comes as thousands of migrants from Central America continue to move north toward the US. In his tweet, Trump again blamed Democrats for weak immigration laws and quoted a guest on Fox & Friends. "Brandon Judd of the National Border Patrol Council is right when he says ... that the Democrat inspired laws make it tough for us to stop people at the Border," wrote the president. Judd represents about 16,000 Border Patrol agents in their union, notes NBC News. (It's possible that two more "caravans" might soon be following.)