Trump Deploys U.S. Military to Secure Federal Land at Southern Border

Late Friday, President Donald Trump issued a memorandum directing several federal agencies to enhance military presence along the southern border, intensifying the administration’s approach to immigration enforcement.

This directive, first reported by The Washington Post, raises the potential for U.S. military personnel to interact directly with migrants, leading to concerns about compliance with federal law.

The memo specifically assigns jurisdiction over certain federal lands, including the Roosevelt Reservation, to the Defense Department, while exempting Native American reservations. This action effectively establishes a military buffer zone spanning across the U.S.-Mexico border in Arizona, California, and New Mexico. Migrants crossing into the United States in this area could be considered trespassers on military property, thus empowering active-duty troops to detain them until U.S. Border Patrol agents can respond.

Experts in national and military affairs have voiced apprehension regarding potential violations of the Posse Comitatus Act, which restricts military involvement in domestic law enforcement activities.

The memo outlines a phased implementation within 45 days and hints at potential expansions in scope. It is aimed at the secretaries of the Departments of Defense, Interior, Agriculture, and Homeland Security.

According to the memorandum, “The complexity of the current situation requires that our military take a more direct role in securing our southern border than in the recent past.”

This announcement precedes a deadline for a report due to Trump by April 20 from the secretaries of Defense and Homeland Security, which will recommend whether to invoke the Insurrection Act of 1807 to facilitate mass deportations.

The memo further states that the Secretary of Defense may extend military activities to other federal lands along the border in coordination with the Secretary of Homeland Security and other relevant agencies.

This initiative is part of an executive order signed earlier this year, aimed at clarifying the military’s role in safeguarding U.S. territorial integrity. The executive order is one among five that delineate the application of military resources within U.S. borders, seeking to expedite the administration’s immigration policies.