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Trump Says He'll Send As Many As 15,000 Troops To The Southern Border
National Public Radio ^ | October 31, 2018 | Richard Gonzales

Posted on 11/01/2018 5:43:46 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet

President Trump said Wednesday he could send up to 15,000 troops to the U.S.-Mexico border, which would surpass the number of soldiers currently stationed in Afghanistan.

Speaking to reporters as he left the White House for a campaign rally Wednesday night in Florida, Trump said the number of military personnel on the border "will go up to anywhere between 10,000 and 15,000 military personnel on top of the Border Patrol, ICE, and everybody else at the border."

The current number of troops deployed to the border is 5,239, the head of Northern Command, Gen. Terence O'Shaughnessy, said on Tuesday. He said that number would likely grow even larger. A contingent of 2,092 National Guard members are already stationed at the border.

That total alone is roughly equal to the number of U.S. troops remaining in Iraq and Syria.

The president's announcement comes as the midterm elections next week are widely viewed as referendum on his administration. Trump has made it clear that he will make his anti-immigration policies a key issue in the elections.

The original plan to send about 5,000 troops to the border was announced Monday. On Tuesday, Trump said he's considering changing the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution by executive order in order to deny citizenship to people born on U.S. soil. In his remarks Wednesday, Trump repeated his threat to cut off foreign assistance to Central American countries whose people have joined the caravan of migrants moving north to the U.S.

Earlier in the day, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, speaking at the Pentagon, was asked whether the troop deployment was a political stunt as some critics allege.

"The support that we provide to the secretary for Homeland Security is practical support based on the request from the commissioner of Customs and Border [Protection], so we don't do stunts in this department," said Mattis. He also compared the mission to what the Defense Department might do after a natural disaster.

"We do this following storms, we do this in support of the Department of Homeland Security. This is a different aspect of it, but that's what we are doing," he added.


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Front Page News; Government; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: army; borders; caravan; opfaithfulpatriot; trump

1 posted on 11/01/2018 5:43:46 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

That’s a division. With a thousand mile border, I’ve been saying five divisions. But a division is a great start since, before Trump, nobody was even considering it.

MAGA! BUILD THE WALL!


2 posted on 11/01/2018 5:53:50 PM PDT by LibWhacker
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
Caravaners pelt chopper with rocks, molotov cocktail:

1 min. Twitter vid of same incident

3 posted on 11/01/2018 5:55:21 PM PDT by gaijin
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To: LibWhacker

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJCG_JckSF8&feature=youtu.be

Beto Campaign using campaign funds for Caravan...Project Veritas drop this evening...


4 posted on 11/01/2018 5:55:43 PM PDT by abigkahuna (How can you be at two places at once when you are nowhere at all?)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Herd them back to Mexico City and build the wall there abouts.....possession being nine tenths of the law makes the acquisition payment in full for the U.S. Time we conducted this according to traditional world wide rules.


5 posted on 11/01/2018 5:56:32 PM PDT by S.O.S121.500 (Had ENOUGH Yet ? ........................ Enforce the Bill of Rights .........It is the LAW...)
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To: LibWhacker

GOOD! Close the border tighter than a ducks arse!


6 posted on 11/01/2018 5:56:46 PM PDT by WellyP (question!)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

It so wonderful to have a pro-America President.


7 posted on 11/01/2018 6:05:53 PM PDT by Repeal 16-17 (Let me know when the Shooting starts.)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

15,000 troops to the U.S.-Mexico border, which would surpass the number of soldiers currently stationed in Afghanistan.

The Mex border is far more dangerous to our country than anything in Afghan. Send even more.


8 posted on 11/01/2018 6:29:16 PM PDT by GoldenPup
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To: GoldenPup

Station armed troops on the border...permanently. Pissonthewall.


9 posted on 11/01/2018 6:31:29 PM PDT by GoldenPup
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To: GoldenPup

15K is a nice start!


10 posted on 11/01/2018 6:33:58 PM PDT by Boardwalk
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To: abigkahuna
Beto Campaign using campaign funds for Caravan...Project Veritas drop this evening...

Hmmm... facilitating and encouraging illegal entry into the United States sounds, I don't know, maybe illegal or something? [sarcasm]

11 posted on 11/01/2018 6:38:56 PM PDT by Sparticus (Primary the Tuesday group!)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Rock throwers designate themselves as a free-fire zone.


12 posted on 11/01/2018 7:31:38 PM PDT by Carl Vehse
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To: Boardwalk

Do you realize that is only seven soldiers per border mile?


13 posted on 11/01/2018 8:01:41 PM PDT by Lisbon1940 (No full-term Governors (at the time of election!)
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To: Lisbon1940

But if at least a couple of them are in A-10’s it would be a good start.


14 posted on 11/01/2018 8:39:13 PM PDT by oldasrocks (rump)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Considering that our southern open border poses a much more direct and serious threat to our national security than faraway cavedwellers in Afghanistan do...I would say that beefing up our military at home is a wiser choice. Saves money too. Since we know so many terrorists are sneaking into the US via Mexico, it is much more financially sound to put the money into protecting the homeland at home, first!


15 posted on 11/02/2018 1:34:03 AM PDT by EURASLEEP (The EU is Crashing and They're Asleep at the Wheel)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
"Trump said he's considering changing the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution by executive order "

Ahhhh, good ol' NPR...........

16 posted on 11/02/2018 1:57:43 AM PDT by misanthrope (Deranged, sinister deplorable)
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