Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee to visit southern border

Gov. Bill Lee will travel to the nation’s southern border this weekend to meet with troops from the Tennessee National Guard, according to the governor’s office.

Lee, who said last week that 300 National Guard troops from the state are stationed at the Mexico border, intends to “evaluate needs in securing the border,” his office said in a statement Thursday.

The visit comes nine months after the Tennessee troops arrived at the border.

“The men and women of the Tennessee National Guard are playing a significant role in quelling the most severe border crisis we’ve seen in 20 years,” a statement from Lee said. “I want to personally commend the more than 300 Tennesseans who are serving our country and on the front lines of this crisis.”

Troops from Tennessee have been there since Oct. 1. They include:

› Members of the 269th Military Police Company who are helping train law enforcement and are supplementing the police presence at the border;

› Engineers from the 913th Company, who are assisting with road construction and border wall projects; and

› The 2nd Battalion of the 151st Aviation Regiment, which is helping Customs and Border Protection.

Lee’s office hasn’t elaborated on what specifically the governor plans to do at the border, where a number of high-ranking federal officials have visited in recent weeks as the number of migrants attempting to cross has surged since President Joe Biden took office.

The Tennessee National Guard’s current mission is expected to last through the end of the current federal fiscal year, meaning a possible October 2021 return, according to the governor’s office.

Lee said last week the Tennessee troops will remain at the border “so long as there’s a crisis.”

While Tennessee troops have been stationed there for months, Republican governors in several other states have recently announced they would also be sending troops or state law enforcement officials to assist with border security.

Lee spokesperson Casey Black said last week the state is “evaluating further help” and has not yet determined if Tennessee will send state troopers.

Maj. Gen. Jeff Holmes, adjutant general of the Tennessee National Guard, will accompany Lee on the trip.