Biden sends 1,500 troops to Mexico border for migrant surge

May 2nd, 2023

President Joe Biden walks along a stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border in El Paso Texas, Jan. 8, 2023. The Biden administration has requested 1,500 troops for the U.S.-Mexico border amid an expected migrant surge following the end of pandemic-era restrictions. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)

The Biden administration will send 1,500 troops to the U.S.-Mexico border amid an expected migrant surge following the end of pandemic-era restrictions, according to four administration officials.

Military personnel will do data entry, warehouse support and other administrative tasks so that U.S. Customs and Border Protection can focus on fieldwork, the officials said. The troops will not do law enforcement work and will be sent down for roughly 90 days, though their presence can be extended if necessary. The officials were not authorized to speak publicly about the request because it had not yet been approved and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. It wasn’t clear when they would be deployed.

The COVID-19 restrictions allowed U.S. officials to turn away tens of thousands of migrants crossing the southern border, but those restrictions will lift May 11 and border officials are bracing for an expected surge of migrants. Even amid the restrictions, the administration has seen record numbers of people crossing the U.S.-Mexico border and President Joe Biden has responded by cracking down on those who cross illegally, and by the creation of new pathways meant to offer alternatives to a dangerous and often deadly journey.

Biden’s actions follow similar moves by former President Donald Trump who deployed active duty troops to the border to assist border patrol personnel in processing large migrant caravans, on top of National Guard forces that were already working in that capacity. There are already roughly 2,700 National Guard members at the border now.

The decision is another line of defense in an effort to manage overcrowding and other possible issues that might arise as border officials move away from the COVID-19 restrictions. Last week, administration officials announced they would work to swiftly screen migrants seeking asylum at the border, quickly deport those deemed as not being qualified, and penalizing people who cross illegally into the U.S. or illegally through another country on their way to the U.S. border.

They will also open centers outside the United States for people fleeing violence and poverty to apply to fly in legally and settle in the United States, Spain or Canada. The first processing centers will open in Guatemala and Colombia, with others expected to follow.