Governor Brian Kem said up to 20 additional Georgia National Guard members will support Texas Governor Gregg Abbott in his efforts to secure the state’s southern border in his standoff with the Biden administration.
In a press conference on Tuesday afternoon, Kemp pledged 15 to 20 additional Georgia National Guard troops to assist with constructing a command post at the border.
Kemp told the media the “group of well-trained soldiers will include those with engineering, mechanical and general purpose skills” and explained, “their contributions will be outlined by the official request made by the Texas guard to our own guard” in Georgia.
“Today we reinforce our commitment to keeping Georgians safe, but also the right of states to defend themselves against threats when an administration in Washington is unwilling to step up and lead,” Kemp explained.
Citing warnings from Republican governors and the number of illegal immigrants crossing, he added, “No one can claim there’s not a crisis at our southern border, and thanks to the fialures of the White House, now every state in the country is a border state.”
The governor’s remarks came just one day after the Georgia State Senate passed SR 543 expressing support for any action Kemp might take to support Abbott and Texas secure the border and specifically calling for the Biden administration to return to the border policies of former President Donald Trump.
In addition to expressing support for “any action taken” by Kemp “to allocate resources and assistance to the protection of the southern border,” the resolution also urges “Congress to close the southern border and reinstate funding for as well as construction of the border wall.”
Further, the lawmakers condemned the executive actions taken by President Joe Biden “relating to the southern border and urge for the reinstatement of former President Donald Trump’s border policies.”
Texas’s “border czar,” Mike Banks, warned the decreased illegal immigration in Texas is diverting the crisis toward western states.
“As Texas gains control of an area,” Banks told The Center Square last week, “we’re going to maintain that area and we’re going to expand. We’re going to gain, maintain, expand. We’re going to cut off illegal entry into the state of Texas.”
He noted, “Illegal entry in Texas has consequences,” which he said explained why criminal organizations are diverting illegal immigrants to enter the country through other states.
Watch Kemp’s full press conference:
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Georgia Star News, The Virginia Star, and the Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Brian Kemp” by Brian Kemp.
