The newly elected Democratic governors in California and New Mexico have decided to pull most National Guard troops from their deployment at the southern border.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Feb. 11 that he will withdraw 260 of the 360 troops who were sent to assist at the border last year by his predecessor, Jerry Brown, also a Democrat.
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham made a similar announcement Feb. 5, withdrawing about 100 troops deployed by her predecessor, Susana Martinez, a Republican.
Trump’s Focus
Both Newsom’s and Grisham’s moves were mostly a statement—expressing opposition to President Donald Trump, who requested the deployment in April to help stem the tide of illegal border crossings.Since his campaign, Trump has called the situation at the border a crisis, asking Congress to authorize construction of a wall on the border where security is inadequate. He pointed to drug smuggling, human trafficking, gang violence, and other crimes connected with illegal immigration and border trespassing, as well as the violence and other dangers faced by migrants who seek illegal entry.
“Based on my extensive experience fighting transnational crime along the southern border, I know that we should absolutely finish building the wall, for the sake of the children,” he said in a Fox News op-ed.
Negotiations
Trump demanded $5.7 billion to construct 234 miles of additional steel fencing along the 2,000-mile border in the 2019 budget, but Democrat lawmakers blocked the proposal. Trump refused to sign a bill without the wall money, forcing a partial government shutdown in December.After a record-breaking 35 days, Trump agreed to temporarily end the shutdown in exchange for a promise from lawmakers to negotiate on border security funding. The leading Republican negotiator, Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), said on Feb. 10 the talks had stalled over the weekend because the Democrats wanted to limit immigration authorities’ detention capacity.
Even if Congress reaches a workable deal on the matter, it will likely give Trump much less than the $5.7 billion he wants for the wall. Officials have mentioned figures ranging from zero to $2.6 billion. If a deal can’t be reached, the partial shutdown will restart on Feb. 16.
There are 31 active national emergencies already declared. If Trump does use the emergency powers for border construction, Democrats and left-leaning activists are likely to challenge the move in courts.