Trump Ordered Troops to the Border, But They're Doing Busywork
Source: Politico
In this ramshackle town, National Guard soldiers are doing everything from shoveling manure to changing tires. What they’re not doing: Watching the border.
By BRYAN BENDER June 14, 2018
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They have been carrying out a variety of tasks assisting the U.S. Border Patrol in the months since their initial deployment, but all with one thing in common: They’re as far away from the border as possible. In reality, the hundreds of troops deployed in southern Arizona are keeping up the rear, so to speak; in one assignment, soldiers are actually feeding and shoveling out manure from the stalls of the Border Patrol’s horses.
Back in April, Trump hailed the deployment as a “big step,” claiming, “We really haven’t done that before, or certainly not very much before.”
But that isn’t accurate, either: Both George W. Bush and Barack Obama sent the Guard to the border under similar circumstances; Bush in far larger numbers than Trump — some 6,000 compared to up to 4,000 now, and Obama to the tune of 1,200.
In Arizona, at least, the Guard soldiers are being kept at an even safer distance than during previous deployments, veterans of past missions say, and assigned supporting roles that can free up Border Patrol agents for field work.
Read more: https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/06/14/trump-ordered-troops-to-the-border-but-theyre-doing-busywork-218821
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