President Trump touted his efforts to increase security at the border Saturday afternoon as National Guard troops began to deploy to the area.
“We are sealing up our Southern Border,” Trump tweeted. “The people of our great country want Safety and Security. The Dems have been a disaster on this very important issue!”
His tweet comes as Arizona and Texas begin to deploy hundreds of guardsmen to the border starting this weekend as part of Trump’s plan to shore up the area until his border wall is complete.
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Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey (R) said he will send 150 National Guard troops to the border and Army National Guard Brig. Gen. Tracy Norris said 250 troops will go to Texas’s border with Mexico.
Defense Secretary James Mattis on Friday approved a plan to deploy 4,000 troops to the U.S.-Mexico border.
The memo authorizing the deployment calls for the National Guard personnel to support the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) “southern border security mission while under the command and control of their respective governors through September 30, 2018.”
The troops are not allowed to perform law enforcement activities or interact with migrants or people detained by the DHS. They will only be armed when necessary for self-defense.
The troop deployment comes after Trump was heavily criticized by his base for not pressing Congress for more federal funding for his border wall.
A massive spending bill passed by Congress last month allocated $1.6 billion for border security but had restrictions on how the funds could be used.