The Trump administration is considering the mass mobilization of 100,000 National Guard troops to sweep up undocumented immigrants in 11 states, according to a draft memo, the Associated Press reported Friday. The 11-page proposal under review would give the governors of those states the ultimate say on whether to deploy these troops for that purpose.
President Donald Trump promised on the campaign trail that as president there would be a “deportation force” that would deport the millions of undocumented immigrants from the country. This order, if implemented, could be the beginnings of fulfilling that campaign pledge as it’s estimated that half of the country’s undocumented immigrants live in the 11 states named: California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oregon, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Louisiana.
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White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer told reporters on Air Force One Friday that the report was “100 percent not true.” The memo has been circulating among staff at the Department of Homeland Security for the past two weeks, the AP reported.
The DHS did not deny the existence of the memo, but said it was an early draft and not seriously considered.
It became a common refrain during and after the presidential campaign that people should take Trump “seriously not literally,” a sentiment echoed even by Trump’s former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski. But Trump’s actions as president—such as his executive order targeting immigration from seven Muslim-majority countries — have demonstrated that Trump meant what he said on the campaign trail.
“I’m keeping my promises to the American people,” Trump said at a press conference Thursday at the White House. “Some people are so surprised that we’re having strong borders. Well, that’s what I’ve been talking about for a year and a half, strong borders…. Some of the things I’m doing probably aren’t popular, but they’re necessary for security and for other reasons.”
Here is the full document, via AP.
