Paul Hammel
LINCOLN — As promised, Gov. Jim Pillen will be sending another group of Nebraskans to patrol the southern border.
In early April, 35 members of the Nebraska National Guard will deploy for 90 days in Eagle Pass, Texas, in support of counterparts with the Texas National Guard, the Governor’s Office announced Monday evening.
In mid-April, 10 troopers with the Nebraska State Patrol will head south to work for two weeks alongside the Texas Department of Public Safety.
Last year, the Nebraska governor sent two separate deployments of Guard personnel and state troopers to the southern border at a cost of nearly $1 million.
As he did last year, Pillen defended the deployment as a necessary step to address an “ongoing crisis” at the U.S.-Mexico border.
“Every state is a border state, and what happens along our nation’s southern border affects us right here in Nebraska,” Pillen said in a press release.
The skills of those sent from Nebraska, he said, “will help stem the tide of illegal immigration and keep deadly drugs off our streets.”
All volunteers
All those being deployed from Nebraska are volunteers, the Governor’s Office said.
The deployment is in response to a request from the State of Texas through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, which is used by states to request assistance from other states in the case of disasters.
Major Gen. Craig Strong, the adjutant general of the Nebraska National Guard, said that Nebraska troops are “always ready to respond.”
Col. John Bolduc, superintendent of the State Patrol, said the deployment is a continuation of its support and its response to a “call for help” from a law enforcement partner.
Pillen, in a press release, said that “lax federal border policies” led to a rise in illegal immigration and increased drug trafficking.
The Omaha Division of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency, according to the Governor’s Office, reported an 83% increase in the number of fentanyl pills seized in 2023 compared to 2022.