GOP Govs. Youngkin and McMaster sending National Guard troops to southern border
The governors of Virginia and South Carolina announced Wednesday that at the request of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, they will send state National Guard troops to the southern border to help combat drug smuggling and human trafficking.
In his executive order, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin said he would be deploying 100 troops from the Virginia National Guard, arguing that the flow of illegal drugs across the border, such as fentanyl, has had a “devastating” impact on families in the state.
“The ongoing border crisis facing our nation has turned every state into a border state,” Youngkin said in a statement. “As leadership solutions at the federal level fall short, states are answering the call to secure our southern border, reduce the flow of fentanyl, combat human trafficking and address the humanitarian crisis.”
The Virginia troops will be under military command and “not subject to the civilian authorities of county or municipal governments” for the duration of their 30-day deployment, according to Youngkin’s order.
The troops will be “equipped with weapons, ammunition, body armor, protective masks, and night vision and other support devices,” the directive states.
Similarly, South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster directed the deployment of his state’s National Guard troops citing Abbott’s request and the “safety and security of South Carolinians.”
“At the request of Texas Governor Greg Abbott, I have directed the deployment of South Carolina National Guard troops to Texas to help hold the line on the Southern border. The safety and security of South Carolinians require that we stop the drug cartels, criminals, and terrorists from entering our country to peddle their poison,” McMaster said in a statement.
The Palmetto State’s governor’s office said the mission remains in the “planning phase” with details such as the number of troops being deployed to be finalized in the coming weeks.
The governor’s office said the goal was for troops to be sent to the southern border by July 1.
McMaster,Youngkin and six other governors attended a May 22 border security briefing in Austin, Texas, hosted by Abbott during which he appealed for them to send National Guard troops to Texas to help on the southern border.
Abbott cited the Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC), a national interstate mutual aid agreement, in making his request for troops from the other governors.
Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who launched his 2024 presidential campaign last week, announced two weeks ago that he would be sending Guard troops from the Sunshine State, and more than 1,000 troopers, officers and personnel, to help Texas with the crisis on the border.
Governors from Mississippi, Iowa, Tennessee and Nebraska have also volunteered aid.
Abbott and other GOP border state governors have long criticized President Biden’s handling of the immigration, drug smuggling and human trafficking crisis at the southern border and his policies to address the emergency.
