Days after NBC reported that the Trump administration had considered launching drone strikes on drug cartels in Mexico, President Trump issued a memorandum Friday night to the heads of four federal departments, expanding the U.S. military's role in securing the southern border in accordance with Executive Order 14167 (Clarifying the Military's Role in Protecting the Territorial Integrity of the United States) and Proclamation 10886 (Declaring a National Emergency at the Southern Border of the United States). The move aligns with a broader strategic theme known as hemispheric defense.
The memo, titled "Military Mission for Sealing the Southern Border of the United States and Repelling Invasions," was sent to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins.
It states, "Our southern border is under attack from a variety of threats. The complexity of the current situation requires that our military take a more direct role in securing our southern border than in the recent past."
Here's a breakdown of the memo:
Key Objectives:
Repel border invasion and seal the U.S.–Mexico border from unlawful entry.
Empower the Department of Defense (DoD) to use federal lands (excluding Indian Reservations) for:
- Military operations,
- Border barrier construction,
- Surveillance infrastructure,
- Designation of National Defense Areas.
Agency Coordination:
Secretaries of Defense, Interior, Agriculture, and Homeland Security must coordinate to:
- Transfer jurisdiction of necessary lands to DoD.
- Allow military installations and operations on designated federal land (e.g., Roosevelt Reservation).
- Expedite land withdrawals under 43 U.S.C. 155 to bypass Engle Act restrictions.
Rules of Engagement:
- Armed Forces to operate under DoD-prescribed rules of force.
- Installation commanders maintain authority to exclude individuals under 10 U.S.C. § 2672 and 50 U.S.C. § 797.
Implementation Timeline:
- Initial Phase: Conducted on a limited sector of federal land.
- Within 45 Days: DoD to assess and potentially expand operations to more sectors.
Trump mandated that the U.S. military beef up its presence along the southern border days after NBC reported that Trump administration officials mulled over kinetically dismantling the command and control structures of Mexican drug cartels now designated as terrorists. As previously noted, two months of signals intelligence have been conducted across the region via U.S. military spy planes.
The broader theme readers should understand is that securing the border plays into a much larger theme of national and hemispheric defense across the Americas. Hence, a push for stronger economic integration between the United States and Canada, coupled with a hardened defense perimeter stretching from the Arctic to the Panama Canal.
Boosting hemispheric defense doesn't stop with the southern border, Panama, Canada, or Greenland, but also the American financial system. The number one mission has been ridding the system of Chinese Triads and cartel terrorists, hence the TD Bank AML penalty. All of this is preparing the Americas for 2030 to challenge China.
