BREAKING AP: Defense Secretary Mattis to sign order to send at least 800 troops to US Mexico border

[kpete]

BREAKING: AP source: Defense Secretary Mattis expected to sign order to send at least 800 troops to US-Mexico border.

https://www.roanoke.com/news/politics/wire/ap-source-defense-secretary-mattis-expected-to-sign-order-to/article_8336f5d3-b749-5f96-b505-d74e0f1a65ee.html

[spanone]

1. Mattis is as insane as trump.

Using our troops as political pawns....shame on this administration

[Blue_true]

13. Woodrow Wilson did something similar.

As long as they are not heavily armed.

[spanone]

16. you're equating these refugees with the Mexican Revolution? seriously?

[C_U_L8R]

2. Photo op in time for midterms.

Pathetic. Mattis should be ashamed.

[Hortensis]

5. Probably is. But, photo ops for us also. :)

The passions here and on right wing forums should not delude anyone into imagining that most Americans are filled with angry partisan hostility. Most not only want decency, cooperation and above all stability but must be feeling the differences between what's happening now and what they grew up with as normal.

[Bfd]

3. Don't worry stupid racist voters, Trump's protecting you from the immigrants!

Purely optics right in time for election day

This country has fallen so far.

We have just one day to save ourselves.

VOTE BLUE 💙

[ismnotwasm]

4. To do what, exactly?

[lapfog_1]

6. Not at all legal

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Posse_Comitatus_Act

The Posse Comitatus Act is a United States federal law (18 U.S.C. § 1385, original at 20 Stat. 152) signed on June 18, 1878 by President Rutherford B. Hayes. The purpose of the act – in concert with the Insurrection Act of 1807 – is to limit the powers of the federal government in using federal military personnel to enforce domestic policies within the United States. It was passed as an amendment to an army appropriation bill following the end of Reconstruction and was subsequently updated in 1956 and 1981.

The act only specifically applies to the United States Army and, as amended in 1956, the United States Air Force. While the act does not explicitly mention the United States Navy and the United States Marine Corps, the Department of the Navy has prescribed regulations that are generally construed to give the act force with respect to those services as well. The act does not apply to the Army National Guard or the Air National Guard under state authority from acting in a law enforcement capacity within its home state or in an adjacent state if invited by that state's governor. The United States Coast Guard, which operates under the Department of Homeland Security, is not covered by the Posse Comitatus Act either, primarily because although the Coast Guard is an armed service, it also has both a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency mission.

The title of the act comes from the legal concept of posse comitatus, the authority under which a county sheriff, or other law officer, conscripts any able-bodied man to assist him or her in keeping the peace.

[grantcart]

14. Correct

The work around is likely to be the same as with reserve troops sent

- not armed
-no contact with immigrants
- assigned positions to watch and report

Absolutely terrible precedent

[lapfog_1]

17. the operative word is "enforce"

armed or not, someone can be construed to be "enforcing domestic policy"
no contact - being ordered to even observe people for the purpose of alerting Border Patrol or the police could be construed as enforcement of domestic policy

The members of the Army and Air Force are proscribed by law from enforcement. I suspect a court challenge will be forthcoming.

Not to mention that this is, in general, just a huge over-reaction to 8000 or so tired, hungry, mostly women and children, refugees WALKING to our border to apply for asylum ( which is not at all illegal )

I'm guessing that more than a few will die on the trip... from Central America, not South America ( The Don is such a ignoramus ) .

They are fleeing violence in their home countries CAUSED ( in no small measure ) by US Policy and our own failure in the so-called "war on drugs".

[eleny]

18. By referring to it as an invasion and saying there are terrorists within the group....

He might have broader powers.

[lapfog_1]

19. The law is pretty clear

Trump could order BP agents from other location to man the area near where they believe this "invasion" is going to take place... or the FBI, INS, Secret Service, or any other federal police authority ( even, I suppose, the DEA and Federal Marshalls ) . But the military is specifically proscribed from this sort of activity unless war is declared.

And the invasion force is mostly unarmed, tired, and hungry, women and children.

How about we send the Red Cross instead... with like blankets and food.

[eleny]

20. I've been reading about it again a lot today and it's not as clear as you believe

As was pointed out up-thread, the army can be used to support local authorities. And from what I've read, sadly he could use troops to help enforce our sovereignty. That's probably why he's been referring to the group as an invasion and that middle eastern bad actors are within the numbers of Central American immigrants.

This is murkier than I'd like.

[Dorian Gray]

7. Maybe... just maybe...

(this is just total hope speaking) they'll be there to keep the peace. Make sure border patrol and other self-made patrol people won't start shooting or separating.

I'm hoping that's what their orders are. Not a standoff.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

22. It's possible you're not familiar with the mission of the U.S. Army?

[haele]

8. To do what? Party when not marching around? Shut Trump up?

The majority of the refugees won't be anywhere close to the border until mid-January at the earliest. Even if some are climbing on trains to cut the travel time down, most will be stuck in Mexico due to Willa and winter.

Is this supposed to be like going after Pancho Villa? That was a cluster and a half back in the day anyway.

I bet he's sending reservists or guardsmen - they're cheaper than actual DoD military forces. Without an actual mission to perform for the time being other than maybe teaching the terrain just in case something did happen and the Border Patrol is overwhelmed.

As a reservist, I hated drilling when there was nothing to do but man a desk and shuffle paperwork.

Haele

[grantcart]

15. Not only that asylum seekers turn themselves in so that they can seek asylum

[Lobo27]

9. Mexico is an ally right?

So what happens when a soldier kills a Mexican National on the Mexican side of the border? Lets say a kid playing in a field?

[panader0]

10. The US/Mexico border is 1900 miles plus.

That's like one soldier every 2.37 miles. I feel much safer now.

[tymorial]

11. Wag wag wag wag

[uponit7771]

12. +1, I was thinking it was going to be a frog nuke

[UTUSN]

21. Will be looking up "posse comitatus" - hope somebody fills me in meantime.