Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth visited troops at the border in El Paso, Texas, where he pledged the Pentagon’s full support to Border Patrol in gaining “operational control” of the US-Mexico frontier.
Hegseth told reporters Monday that the thousands of additional troops deployed to the region are there to help free up overwhelmed border agents who are there to repel an “invasion.”
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth visits the US-Mexico border on Monday. X/SecDef
US military personnel stand guard near the US-Mexico border wall, as they await a visit from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, in Sunland Park, New Mexico, February 3, 2025. REUTERSHe said that under the Biden admin, agents were “babysitting” and releasing migrants who were crossing illegally. Roughly 8 million migrants illegally entered the US during the Democrat’s four-year term.
President Trump has wasted no time ordering the military to fortify the border since taking power, declaring a national emergency over illegal crossings.
Trump recently instructed the newly-anointed defense chief to open space to hold 30,000 illegal migrants at Guantanamo Bay, which Hegseth called the “perfect place” to detain “hardened criminals,” including Tren de Aragua gangbangers before they’re deported.
Hegseth pledged to gain “operational control” of the US-Mexico border.
“Any assets necessary at the Defense Department to support the expulsion and detention of those in the country illegally are on the table,” said Hegseth, who was joined by President Trump’s border czar Tom Homan.
