Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced on Friday that the state will send 50 police officers to Texas to enforce the U.S. border with Mexico, the Miami Herald reports.
The Herald notes that the governor said during a press conference in Pensacola that funding for the mission has yet to be determined, but they "do not anticipate getting any federal funds."
"That is still a point of discussion," DeSantis said. "Typically, if someone would help us, you know, we would pick up some of their funding and so that is how we would hope that it goes."
He added, "We look forward to seeing them in action," which he said could be as soon as Monday.
"Hopefully I will be able to get out there at some point and wish them well when they are on the ground," DeSantis said.
"We are unable to share mission specifics at this time to protect the security of the missions they are working on," added his spokesperson, Katie Strickland.
DeSantis said upon announcing the plan that it came in response to "the failure of the Biden administration to secure our southern border."
It also comes two weeks after Govs. Doug Ducey of Arizona and Greg Abbott of Texas sent a letter to the other 48 states calling for assistance dealing with the border, invoking the mutual aid agreement known as the Emergency Management Assistance Compact.
"On behalf of Texas and Arizona, we respectfully but urgently request that you send all available law-enforcement resources to the border in defense of our sovereignty and territorial integrity," reads the letter. "Securing our border with Mexico is the federal government's responsibility. But the Biden administration has proven unwilling or unable to do that job."
A spokesperson for Customs and Border Protection said, in response to a question about the governors’ letter, said that it "defers to the Governors' offices to speak to any steps they are taking to increase an enforcement posture."
The agency "continues to leverage our longstanding relationships with state and local law enforcement, including deconflicting operations in the border region and responding to call outs from other law enforcement agencies."
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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