CLARIFYING THE MILITARY'S ROLE IN PROTECTING THE TERRITORIAL INTEGRITY OF THE UNITED STATES
This executive order directs the US military to prioritize securing the nation's borders.
It declares a national emergency at the southern border due to illegal immigration and drug trafficking, and tasks the Secretary of Defense with revising the Unified Command Plan to assign USNORTHCOM the mission of sealing the borders and maintaining sovereignty.
The order also mandates additions to contingency planning guidance to ensure long-term border security.
Arguments For
- Intended benefits: Enhanced border security, decreased illegal immigration and drug trafficking, improved national security.
- Evidence cited: The order cites a "National Emergency" along the southern border and the dangers posed by unchecked migration and drug flow.
- Implementation methods: The order directs the Secretary of Defense to revise the Unified Command Plan, assigning USNORTHCOM the mission of border security, and to add specific requirements to contingency planning guidance.
- Legal/historical basis: The order asserts the President's authority as Chief Executive and Commander in Chief to protect national sovereignty and cites the historical role of the military in border security.
Arguments Against
- Potential impacts: Potential for militarization of the border, human rights concerns regarding the treatment of migrants, concerns about the cost and feasibility of the plan.
- Implementation challenges: Logistical challenges of deploying and sustaining military personnel at the border, potential for strained relations with neighboring countries, the need for significant funding.
- Alternative approaches: Increased funding for border patrol, improved technology, diplomatic efforts with sending countries, addressing the root causes of migration.
- Unintended effects: Potential for escalation of tensions, unintended consequences for international relations, potential for human rights abuses.
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered:
Section 1. Purpose. (a) As Chief Executive and as Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the United States, I have no more solemn responsibility than protecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the United States along our national borders. The protection of a nation’s territorial integrity and national boundaries is paramount for its security.
(b) The Armed Forces of the United States have played a long and well-established role in securing our borders against threats of invasion, against unlawful forays by foreign nationals into the United States, and against other transnational criminal activities that violate our laws and threaten the peace, harmony, and tranquility of the Nation. These threats have taken a variety of forms over our Nation’s history, but the Armed Forces have consistently played an integral role in protecting the sovereignty of the United States.
(c) Threats against our Nation’s sovereignty continue today, and it is essential that the Armed Forces staunchly continue to participate in the defense of our territorial integrity and sovereignty. A National Emergency currently exists along the southern border of the United States. Unchecked unlawful mass migration and the unimpeded flow of opiates across our borders continue to endanger the safety and security of the American people and encourage further lawlessness. Accordingly, through this order, I am acting in accordance with my solemn duty to protect and defend the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the United States along our national borders.
This section establishes the purpose of the executive order.
The President, invoking their authority as Chief Executive and Commander-in-Chief, asserts the paramount importance of protecting US territorial integrity and sovereignty.
It cites a history of military involvement in border security and declares a national emergency due to the current threats posed by illegal immigration, drug trafficking and related criminal activities.
The President frames their actions as a fulfillment of their duty to protect the nation's borders.
Sec. 2. Policy. It is the policy of the United States to ensure that the Armed Forces of the United States prioritize the protection of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the United States along our national borders.
This section establishes the official US policy: The military will prioritize protecting the nation's borders and sovereignty.
Sec. 3. Implementation. The Secretary of Defense shall:
(a) No later than 10 days from the effective date of this order, deliver to the President a revision to the Unified Command Plan that assigns United States Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) the mission to seal the borders and maintain the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and security of the United States by repelling forms of invasion including unlawful mass migration, narcotics trafficking, human smuggling and trafficking, and other criminal activities.
(b) On the effective date of this order, add the following requirements to the Contingency Planning Guidance and Guidance for the Employment of the Force:
(i) A Level 3 planning requirement for USNORTHCOM to seal the borders and maintain the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and security of the United States by repelling forms of invasion, including unlawful mass migration, narcotics trafficking, human smuggling and trafficking, and other criminal activities, with a commander’s estimate due to the Secretary of Defense within 30 days of the effective date of this order.
(ii) A campaign planning requirement for USNORTHCOM to provide steady-state southern border security, seal the border, and maintain the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and security of the United States by repelling forms of invasion, including unlawful mass migration, narcotics trafficking, human smuggling and trafficking, and other criminal activities.
(iii) Continuous assessments of all available options to protect the sovereign territory of the United States from mass unlawful entry and impingement on our national sovereignty and security by foreign nations and transnational criminal organizations.
This section details the implementation of the policy.
It directs the Secretary of Defense to revise the Unified Command Plan to give USNORTHCOM the primary responsibility for border security.
Further, it mandates the inclusion of specific planning requirements focused on border sealing and maintaining sovereignty within the Contingency Planning Guidance.
Finally, it calls for continuous assessments of potential solutions to border security challenges.
Sec. 4. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:
(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or
(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.
(b) This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.
(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.
This section includes general provisions.
Subsection (a) clarifies that the order does not affect the authority of other executive departments or the OMB's budgetary functions.
Subsection (b) states that implementation must adhere to existing laws and available funding.
Subsection (c) is a standard clause stating that the order does not create any legally enforceable rights.