Trump says he will use military for deportations to fullest extent of law

Source: Reuters

December 12, 2024 4:02 PM EST Updated 3 hours ago


WASHINGTON, Dec 12 - President-elect Donald Trump will use the U.S. military to the fullest extent of the law to support his mass deportation effort, he told TIME magazine in an interview published on Thursday, committing to his plan to utilize troops to try to remove record numbers of immigrants in the U.S. illegally.

When asked about a U.S. law that generally prevents the military from being used in domestic law enforcement, Trump said illegal immigration amounted to an invasion that needed to be stopped. "I consider it an invasion of our country," Trump told TIME as part of an interview naming him 'Person of the Year.' "We'll get National Guard, and we'll go as far as I'm allowed to go, according to the laws of our country."

Trump, a Republican, won reelection in November portraying migrants as dangerous criminals and promising a wide-ranging crackdown on both legal and illegal immigration, including mass deportations. He plans to pull resources from across the federal government for the deportation effort and declare a national emergency to unlock funds for enforcement, Reuters reported in November.

Both Republican and Democratic administration have used National Guard troops to assist the U.S. Border Patrol at the border with Mexico, but they have not been used to make immigration arrests.

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-says-he-will-use-military-deportations-fullest-extent-law-2024-12-12/