Gov. Perry to deploy 1,000 National Guard troops on the border

Gov. Perry is stepping up and sending around 1,000 National Guard troops to the border at a pretty hefty cost to keep drug and human trafficking out of Texas:

POLITICO – Texas Gov. Rick Perry will announce later Monday that he is deploying state National Guard troops to the U.S.-Mexico border, according to a state senator.

Democratic state Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa said the governor will make the announcement at a press conference in Austin on Monday afternoon. The news was first reported by The Monitor.

According to an internal memo obtained by the newspaper, Perry will call for a gradual escalation of Guard troops with the potential of reaching 1,000 troops after one month.

In June, Texas sent officials from the Texas Department of Public Safety to the border to focus on drug trafficking and human smuggling.

Perhaps anticipating blowback to the decision, the memo states that the move does not amount to “a militarization of the border.”
“This is not a militarization of the border,” the memo says. “The DPS and the National Guard are working to keep any drug and human trafficking south of 83 and with the goal of keeping any smuggling from entering major highways to transport East/West/and North.”

The memo estimates that the deployment of troops, in addition to the DPS forces now along the border, will cost Texas $5 million a week. The memo reports that while the state hasn’t yet determined how exactly to pay for the increase in forces, the money will come out of “non critical” areas in the budget.

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