{"id":42518,"date":"2019-05-08T20:30:02","date_gmt":"2019-05-08T20:30:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2019\/05\/08\/democrats-warn-shanahan-military-border-moves-could-spark-posse-comitatus-violations\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T23:35:19","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T23:35:19","slug":"democrats-warn-shanahan-military-border-moves-could-spark-posse-comitatus-violations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/05\/08\/democrats-warn-shanahan-military-border-moves-could-spark-posse-comitatus-violations\/","title":{"rendered":"Dems warn Shanahan new border actions could break civil-military law"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WASHINGTON \u2015 Democratic lawmakers want the head of the Pentagon to drop plans for military personnel to directly interact with migrants on the U.S. southern border, arguing it could violate America\u2019s long-standing separation of the military and law enforcement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the latest flashpoint in the military\u2019s growing role at the border<\/a>, 19 Democratic senators, including several presidential hopefuls, sent a letter<\/a> to acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan on Wednesday urging him to revoke waivers he granted to nearly 280 of the more than 4,000 troops on the border. They also want a legal justification for \u201cmilitary protective activities\u201d that President Donald Trump has authorized troops to perform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe urge you to revoke these waivers to prevent the continued escalation of military involvement in immigration enforcement activities and the further politicization of the use of servicemembers to inappropriately respond to a divisive domestic policy issue,\u201d reads the letter, led by Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and a senior member of the Armed Services and Judiciary committees. The letter was obtained by Defense News.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Border Patrol agents guard a gate at the entrance to what was a temporary holding facility under the Paso del Norte Port of Entry bridge in El Paso, Texas, on Sunday, March 31, 2019. Migrants, including young children and babies, seeking asylum were being kept in a U.S. Border Patrol temporary holding area under the bridge. Some migrants were held there for as many as four days and were forced to sleep outside on gravel, provided only thin Mylar blankets for warmth. (Ryan Michalesko\/The Dallas Morning News via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Several presidential hopefuls joined the letter, including Michael Bennett, Cory Booker, Kirsten Gillibrand, Kamala Harris, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren \u2015 as well as the Senate Armed Services Committee\u2019s ranking member, Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., and the ranking member of the Senate Appropriations Committee\u2019s Subcommittee on Defense, Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For troops on the border, the mission in support of the Department of Homeland Security has involved reinforcing barriers and providing logistics support, but typically not directly engaging with or detaining immigrants or asylum seekers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The lawmakers targeted the Defense Department\u2019s agreement to provide 160 personnel to transport migrants, 100 personnel to distribute meals and conduct welfare checks, and 20 military attorneys to represent DHS and Immigration and Customs Enforcement in immigration court and before the Board of Immigration Appeals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The lawmakers requested legal justification for Trump\u2019s authorization for military protective activities, which include \u201ca show or use of force (including lethal force, where necessary), crowd control, temporary detention, and cursory search\u201d if deemed necessary to protect Customs and Border Protection personnel.<\/p>\n\n\n\t