Biden to Send 1,500 Active Duty Troops to U.S.-Mexico Border

President Joe Biden approved 1,500 more troops for deployment to the U.S.-Mexico border on Tuesday.

The Department of Defense (DOD) agreed to supply the additional troops at the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) request. The troops will remain at the border for 90 days to aid U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) officers.

The decision comes roughly a week before the Trump-era policy known as Title 42 is set to expire May 11, the same day the federal COVID-19 public health emergency expires. Title 42 is a provision of the Public Health Service Act of 1944 that was invoked in 2020 at the start of the pandemic to block most asylum seekers from entering the United States on the southern border because of the high risks of coronavirus transmission.

Title 42's looming expiration has raised concerns that substantial numbers of immigrants will attempt to cross the border. More than 2 million immigrants have been turned away from the border using Title 42 since the provision was enacted.

With COVID-19 concerns significantly diminished in the United States, Biden has faced mounting pressure to increase border security to counteract the expected surge of border crossings after Title 42 expires. The supplemental troops will remain at the border for nearly three months following that expiration.

"At the request of DHS, DOD will provide a temporary increase of an additional 1,500 military personnel, for 90 days, to supplement CBP efforts at the border," a U.S. official told Newsweek.

"These 1,500 military personnel will fill critical capability gaps, such as ground-based detection and monitoring, data entry and warehouse support, until CBP can address these needs through contracted support. They will not be doing any law enforcement work," the official said.

Border control, a hot button topic, is expected to be central to Biden's 2024 reelection bid, as the president's administration has often touted its border enforcement measures. But Biden has faced mounting criticism from conservatives about his border control policy, with many accusing him of not enforcing border crossings strictly enough. Criticism has heightened after the shooting and killing of five people in Cleveland, Texas, last week. The suspected gunman, Mexican national Francisco Oropeza, had been deported from the U.S. four separate times since 2009.

Jennifer Griffin, a national security correspondent for Fox News, tweeted that the troops would consist of active duty soldiers from various Army units.

On Sunday, Washington Examiner homeland security and immigration reporter Anna Giaritelli tweeted that border patrol agents take more than 5,000 immigrants into custody each day.

"When Title 42 ends in 12 days, we could see 13-18,000 per day. Obama's DHS Secretary once said 1,000 per day being a bad situation," Giaritelli tweeted.

The Washington Examiner also reported that the soldiers will be armed for self-defense.

Update, 05/02/2023, 1:37 p.m. ET: This story was updated with a comment by a U.S. official on the troop deployment at the border.