What does a national emergency at the border actually mean?
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Trump’s executive order will surge troops and ‘erect physical barriers’ on the southern border. In his inaugural address, the president declared that “all illegal entry will immediately be halted and we will begin the process or returning millions and millions of criminal aliens back to the place from which they came.’.
American troops will “repel the disastrous invasion of our country,” he said. “The last four years have created an unconscionable risk to public safety, public health and the national security of the United States due to the Biden administration border policies,” an incoming White House official told reporters Monday.
The emergency declaration will “erect physical barriers” to support U.S.-Mexico border wall construction and deploy military assets under the command of the Secretary of Defense, according to the official. It is unclear how many troops will be assigned to the southern border.
The official, speaking anonymously to preview the actions, said it will be up to the Pentagon to determine which personnel will be deployed. They did not share a copy or language in the actual text. While there will be U.S. military service members stationed on the southern border, there will also be “other elements of the United States government working throughout the country,” the official said.
It is unclear what “emergency” the new administration is responding to. Monthly border crossings plummeted in 2024, compared to the record highs in 2023. Roughly 46,000 people crossed the border illegally in November, the lowest number during the Biden administration. Average daily crossings in December were expected to be the lowest since 2020, according to federal authorities.
