New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu and fellow Republicans are being criticized by a home state newspaper for sending $850,000 and over a dozen National Guard soldiers to Texas.
Last Friday, New Hampshire's Fiscal Committee approved Sununu's request to authorize $850,000 in expenditures to send up to 15 members of the state's National Guard to Eagle Pass, Texas, for up to 90 days, under the direction of the Texas National Guard. Texas has been embroiled in political and legal conflicts with the federal government over the number of migrants coming over the border the past year.
Earlier this month, Sununu was one of 14 Republican governors to travel to the southern border in support of Texas Governor Greg Abbott and his Operation Lone Star, which aims to increase border security. Last month, he also was one of 25 Republican governors who signed a joint statement supporting Texas' efforts to deter illegal immigrants and the state's "right to self-defense."
Commenting on the $850,000 allocation, an editorial in the Valley News in West Lebanon, New Hampshire, said, "All this money could be much better spent addressing actual problems in the North Country, which doesn't normally get much love or money from state government."
The editorial continued: "We're pretty sure that battling drug addiction, mental illness, social isolation and lack of broadband service would be more welcome than chasing the tale of a border threat."
Newsweek reached out to Sununu's office via email for comment.
In his letter of request, Sununu wrote that Texas "still needs additional manpower and resources absent the Federal Government's support."
"There is nothing safe, orderly or humane about what is happening at the southern border," he wrote. "Fentanyl is pouring in, human trafficking is occurring unabated, and individuals on the terrorist watch list are coming in unchecked."
The $850,000 was approved in a 6-4 vote, with all the "no" votes coming from committee Democrats. The state's deputy adjutant general, Warren Perry, said $650,000 of the approved funding will cover salary and benefits, such as housing and meals, while the rest will cover travel costs and equipment, according to the New Hampshire Bulletin.
One of those Democrats in opposition, Senator Lou D'Allesandro, questioned Sununu on how 15 soldiers would aid Texas. He said the state would be better off benefiting from a broader immigration package that is opposed by congressional Republicans.
"Although it's a wonderful thought in terms of support, it seems to be that the real issue is that Congress isn't funding what they should be funding to protect the southern border," D'Allesandro said.
New Hampshire's American Friends Services Committee, which consists of immigrants' rights groups, peace organizations and faith-based leaders, criticized Sununu and statewide Republicans.
"New Hampshire needs affordable housing, substance use treatment, mental health resources, and much more—and Granite Staters have made it clear that using taxpayer dollars on immigration enforcement is not a wise nor supported use of that money," the committee told Newsweek in a statement.
It went on: "Using taxpayer dollars to send New Hampshire National Guard members to Texas is only designed to score political points and does nothing to improve quality of life in New Hampshire. Funding cruelty at the border is not what our state stands for."
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Hampshire said on January 31 that that Border Patrol had only 21 apprehensions or encounters at the New Hampshire-Canada border during the 15 months between October 1, 2022, and December 31, 2023.
The data—which also showed just one migrant encounter in New Hampshire between October 2022 and January 2023—was provided to the ACLU after a settlement following a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Reached by Newsweek, the ACLU had no additional comment.
Sununu and Republicans in the Legislature previously allocated $1.4 million to counter what they described as a law enforcement "crisis," providing an expanded police and surveillance presence in the northern portion of the state.
But Sununu and other New Hampshire officials chastised the ACLU's findings.
"Securing our northern border is widely supported by citizens across New Hampshire, and cherry-picked data from the ACLU will never impact New Hampshire's obligation to protect our citizens," Sununu said in a statement. "Due to the regionality of this crisis, focusing on state specific data is short sighted and misleading."
More than 12,200 people were apprehended crossing into the U.S. illegally from Canada last year, a 241 percent jump from the 3,578 arrested the previous year, according to The New York Times. The majority of crossings involved Mexicans, who do not require a visa to fly to Canada.
The states hit hardest during the surge have been New Hampshire, New York and Vermont—all part of a region known as the Swanton Sector, home to nearly 70 percent of illegal crossings in 2023.
New Hampshire has 58 miles of the 295-mile Swanton Sector.
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Nick Mordowanec is a Newsweek reporter based in Michigan. His focus is reporting on Ukraine and Russia, along with social ... Read more
