Trump says ‘strong action’ coming on immigration

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump pledged “strong action today” on immigration, a day after he said he wants to use the military to secure the U.S.-Mexico border until his “big, beautiful wall” is erected.

In an early-morning tweet Wednesday, Trump said “Our Border Laws are very weak” and said Democrats “stand in our way” of new laws.

He added, “We will be taking strong action today.”

Trump did not offer further details and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Trump told reporters on Tuesday that he’s been discussing the idea of using the military at the border with Defence Secretary Jim Mattis.

“We’re going to be doing things militarily. Until we can have a wall and proper security, we’re going to be guarding our border with the military,” Trump said, calling the move a “big step.”

It wasn’t immediately clear exactly how the proposal would work or what kind of troops Trump wanted to deploy, but the White House later said Trump wanted to mobilize the National Guard.

Federal law prohibits the use of active-duty service members for law enforcement inside the U.S., unless specifically authorized by Congress.

But over the past 12 years, presidents have twice sent National Guard troops to the border to bolster security and assist with surveillance and other support.

The White House counsel’s office has been working on the idea for several weeks, according to a senior official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal plans.

Trump has been frustrated by slow action on building a wall along the Mexican border.

He’s previously suggested using the Pentagon’s budget to pay for the wall, arguing it is a national security priority, despite strict rules that prohibit spending that’s not authorized by Congress.

At the Pentagon, officials struggled throughout Tuesday to answer questions about the plan, including rudimentary details on whether it would involve National Guard members.

But the administration appeared to be considering a model similar to a 2006 operation in which then-president George W. Bush deployed National Guard troops to the southern border.

Under Operation Jump Start, 6,000 National Guard troops were sent to assist the border patrol.

Statistics show 36,695 arrests of people trying to cross the southwest border in February 2018, up from 23,555 in the same month of the previous year.