It was reported that President Trump approved United States military troops to use lethal force at the southern border if needed for defending themselves against the migrant caravans. These caravans are attempting to enter the United States illegally.
President Trump spoke with members of the military on Thanksgiving morning. After doing so he answered questions about the troops being sent to the southern border to deal with the migrant caravan.
Per whitehouse.gov:
Q Mr. President, what about the idea that the military may use lethal force against these migrants coming through?
THE PRESIDENT: If they have to, they’re going to use lethal force. I’ve given the okay.
Q Did you authorize them to do that?
THE PRESIDENT: Yeah, if they have to. I hope they don’t have to. But, you know, you’re dealing with a minimum of 500 serious criminals. So I’m going to let the military be taken advantage of. I have no choice. Do I want that to happen? Absolutely not. But you’re dealing with rough people.
You ask the people in Tijuana, Mexico — they opened with wide arms, just, “Come in, come in. Let me help you. Let us take care of you.” And within two days, now they’re going crazy to get them out. They want them out. Because things are happening. Bad, bad things are happening in Tijuana. And again, it’s not in this country, because we’ve closed it up.
I actually — two days ago, we closed the border. We actually just closed it. We’re saying, nobody is coming in, because it was out of control. But you take a look at Tijuana, Mexico, and you see what’s happening there — it’s really a bad situation.
Reports have stated that about 6,000 troops are at the southern border reinforcing security.
A Daily Caller report claims the migrant caravan has used "violent tactics" while heading for the United States border. It states the caravan members "have been planning to overwhelm U.S. ports of entry."
Unfortunately, some members of the caravan are purposely causing disruptions at our border ports of entry. There is a legal and illegal way to enter the US. We have deployed additional forces to protect our border. We will enforce all our laws.
— Secretary Kirstjen M. Nielsen (@SecNielsen) November 19, 2018
President Trump has repeatedly emphasized that he wants the United States to have a strong border. He says people are allowed to come in, but they have to come in legally. Seems fair, right?
