(The Center Square) – U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has authorized the mobilization of up to 700 military personnel to support of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement efforts in Florida, Louisiana and Texas. Hegseth also is encouraging service members in their last six months of service to transition to serving in federal border security roles.
More than 6,600 active-duty personnel have been deployed to the southwest border since President Donald Trump declared a national emergency there on his first day in office, The Center Square reported.
Service members are being drawn from all components and are operating under a Title 10 duty status, the DOD said. They are tasked with providing logistical support and conducting administrative and clerical functions to assist with processing illegal foreign nationals being detained at ICE facilities. “They will not directly participate in law enforcement activities,” the DOD said.
“In maintaining the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and security of the United States,” the DOD is working with the Department of Homeland Security to provide “critical resources to support ICE’s mission, freeing up law enforcement personnel to focus on law enforcement tasks and missions,” it said in a statement.
In an effort to expand additional opportunities for service members to help secure the U.S. borders, Hegseth also signed an agreement with DHS to enhance opportunities for those finishing their military service to transition to work for DHS, U.S. Customs and Border Protection or ICE through a SkillBridge career transition program. It applies to those in the last 180 days of their military service.
The SkillBridge program provides civilian professional training opportunities allowing for active-duty service members to still receive military compensation and benefits. Each branch of the U.S. military is authorized to encourage outgoing service members “to participate in industry training, apprenticeships or internships at an employer of their choice during their last six months in service,” a memorandum for secretaries of the military departments from Hegseth says. “SkillBridge lets our warfighters focus full-time on building their future career and gives employers access to the world’s most highly trained and motivated workforce at no cost to them.”
The directive also notes that “as an exception to policy,” all military departments are instructed to “prioritize and broadly advertise these critical DHS career opportunities to transitioning Service members. This is an exceptional opportunity to ensure the best of America can continue to serve and defend their country.”
To support the effort, the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness established agreements with CBP and ICE to enhance SkillBridge opportunities. The Defense Human Resource Agency is working with all branches of the military, “as an exception to policy, to prioritize and broadly advertise these critical DHS career opportunities to transitioning Service members,” the DOD says.
DHRA is also updating the SkillBridge website and advertising the program through social media channels. All military departments have been instructed to approve service member requests to participate in the SkillBridge program to work for CBP and ICE “to the maximum extent possible in the last 180 days of service,” Hegseth’s memo states. “Requests should be disapproved only where approval would impact the critical readiness and operational needs of the Military Service concerned.”
