CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Governor Roy Cooper said many questions have to be answered before he would support sending North Carolina National Guard troops to patrol the U.S. southern border.
President Trump has signed off on sending thousands of troops to bolster border security. As of Thursday afternoon, no request had been made to send any North Carolina units.
As President, Mr. Trump commands the active-duty military, but National Guard troops are under the command of each state’s governor.
In a sharply worded statement, Cooper's press secretary, Ford Porter, said the governor would have questions “about cost, duration and mission that should be answered to ensure this is necessary and not simply political.”
President Trump’s call to send Guard troops to the border has raised a lot of questions, including whether the troops would be armed and what exactly their mission would be.
Taking a different stance than Roy Cooper, South Carolina’s Republican Governor Henry McMaster tweeted, “I’ve seen firsthand the dedication and determination of the men and women in the South Carolina National Guard, and I know that if they are called to serve, they will once again make our state proud.”
Lt. Colonel Cynthia King of the South Carolina National Guard said in a statement: “The South Carolina National Guard has not been notified to provide any assets for border security, however we have performed this mission many times in the past.”
In fact, in the late 90’s, King said Guard troops from South Carolina helped build part of the existing Border Wall in the San Diego area.