Indiana, 18 Other States Deploying Guard Troops to Assist ICE

STATEWIDE — Indiana is joining 18 other states in deploying National Guard members to support federal immigration officers.

White House border czar Tom Homan confirmed the news Saturday. He said 1,700 Guard members will assist U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement with duties relating to transportation and intelligence, helping ICE officers, who Homan said are overwhelmed.

“ICE has fewer than 5,000 deportation officers,” said Homan. “We have more than 20 million illegal aliens and we’re trying to locate almost 700,000 with criminal histories.”

According to a spokesperson with the Defense Department, troops will deploy to Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia and Wyoming.

Homan told Fox News last weekend that thousands of public and national security threats are being arrested every week.

“By spreading the National Guard, helping DHS on the streets, it’s going to happen that much quicker,” Homan said.

The Pentagon said they expect this mission to last at least through mid-November.

Assistance from the National Guard in support of ICE is different from the recent deployment of troops to Washington, D.C., by the Trump administration. President Trump said on Monday that there has not been a homicide in D.C. in over 10 days since troops started patrolling the city. He also has pondered sending Guard troops to other major cities like Chicago.

The Indiana National Guard has also formed a new partnership with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia through the State Partnership Program. A signing ceremony in Saudi Arabia solidified the alliance.

The State Partnership Program focuses on developing trust, enhancing regional security, and promoting lasting military cooperation between the two entities.

Indiana, 18 Other States Deploying Guard Troops to Assist ICE Agents  was originally published on wibc.com