NewsNation/World

Actions

Wisconsin governor pulls National Guard from southern border

Posted at 7:36 PM, Feb 25, 2019
and last updated 2019-02-25 21:36:11-05

(CNN) — Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers ordered the state’s 112 troops to leave their posts along the US’ southern border Monday evening.

The Democrat’s order makes Wisconsin the third state to pull National Guard personnel from the border this month, citing President Donald Trump’s rhetoric around border security.

“There is simply not ample evidence to support the president’s contention that there exists a national security crisis at our Southwestern border,” Evers said in a news release. “Therefore, there is no justification for the ongoing presence of Wisconsin National Guard personnel at the border.”

Evers added that the border should be the responsibility of US Customs and Border Protection.

He handed down an executive order to bring the National Guard troops home Monday.

The order came weeks after New Mexico and California ordered their own National Guard troops to come home from the border. The Democratic governors from both states rejected the concept of a crisis at the southern border and criticized the President for his actions. Their decision came prior to Trump’s declaration of a national emergency on the border.

“The Border ’emergency’ is a manufactured crisis. And California will not be part of this political theater. Which is why I have given the National Guard a new mission,” said California Gov. Gavin Newsom in a February 11 release.

Multiple other states withdrew personnel from the border in June in response to the administration’s practice of separating undocumented migrant families.

Evers’ announcement came the same day that 58 former national security officials issued a statement condemning Trump’s use of his national emergency powers.

Members of Congress are also preparing to vote on legislation that would rebuke the declaration of a national emergency and halt efforts to build a wall on the border.