Florida will be sending up to 1,000 members of the Florida National Guard and Florida State Guard to Texas to assist with the southern border, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Thursday.
DeSantis said the guard members will be deployed based on Texas' needs as the state deals with a wave of illegal immigration.
"We need to stop this invasion of the southern border once and for all," DeSantis said at a news conference in Jacksonville Thursday.
The guard members will join the more than 90 officers from the Florida Highway Patrol, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement that are currently deployed to the border.
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DeSantis cited illegal drugs, including fentanyl, and violent crime associated with border crossings.
The Republican governor said that in December, Customs and Border Protection data showed that more than 302,000 illegal immigrants were encountered attempting to cross the southern border – the highest month ever recorded.
Border security has taken center stage in numerous states and in Congress, where Republicans are conditioning aid to Ukraine on a border security deal, and pushing to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
