Rick Perry plans to send 1,000 National Guard troops to patrol the border

Rick Perry plans to send 1,000 National Guard troops to patrol the border
(Image credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) will reportedly deploy about 1,000 members of the Texas National Guard to the Mexican border in an effort to stem the recent immigration surge, according to the The Monitor. Citing a state senator and a leaked memo, the paper reported that Perry would announce the deployments at a Monday news conference in Austin.

The troop buildup comes amid a sustained surge of young immigrants, most of them fleeing violence in Central America. The memo states that the deployments are aimed at preventing human and drug smuggling, and that they do not represent a "militarization of the border." The effort will cost about $12 million per month, according to The Monitor.

Perry, who has called the border crisis President Obama's "Katrina" moment, said at a Sunday event in Iowa that "if we don't get the satisfaction that the federal government's going to move and move quickly, then the state of Texas will in fact fill that void."

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Jon Terbush

Jon Terbush is an associate editor at TheWeek.com covering politics, sports, and other things he finds interesting. He has previously written for Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, and Business Insider.