The acting commandant of the Coast Guard has ordered operational commanders to surge forces to the southern border immediately as part of the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration.
Adm. Kevin Lunday said Tuesday that the Coast Guard will send additional vessels, aircraft and “deployable specialized forces” to increase the service’s presence along the maritime borders between the U.S. and Mexico in the Pacific and the Gulf Coast, and the southern U.S. border approaching Florida to prevent a maritime mass migration from Haiti, Cuba or the Bahamas.
“The U.S. Coast Guard is the world’s premier maritime law enforcement agency, vital to protecting America’s maritime borders, territorial integrity, and sovereignty,” Adm. Lunday said Tuesday, hours after President Trump had fired his predecessor.
The Coast Guard also will increase its maritime border presence around Alaska, Hawaii and overseas U.S. territories such as Guam, American Samoa, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
“Together, in coordination with our Department of Homeland Security and Department of Defense teammates, we will detect, deter, and interdict illegal immigration, drug smuggling, and other terrorist or hostile activity before it reaches our border,” Adm. Lunday said.
On Monday, Mr. Trump signed an executive order directing the military to formulate a plan within 10 days to seal the border. The focus on illegal immigration played a major role in his campaign for the White House.
“A national emergency currently exists along the southern border of the United States. Unchecked unlawful mass migration and the unimpeded flow of opiates across our borders continue to endanger the safety and security of the American people and encourage further lawlessness,” said the order, titled “Clarifying the Military’s Role in Protecting the Territorial Integrity of the United States.”
Mr. Trump sacked Adm. Linda Fagan halfway into her four-year term as Coast Guard commandant. She was the first woman to lead a branch of the U.S. armed forces.
Department of Homeland Security officials said her firing was based on several factors, including cost overruns in the Coast Guard’s icebreaker acquisition program, failure to address concerns along the border and an excessive focus on diversity and inclusion efforts.
• Mike Glenn can be reached at mglenn@washingtontimes.com.