The National Guard on the Southwest Border: Defining The Role

Abstract

The National Guard's role in the War on Terrorism continues to decrease with the troop drawdown in Iraq and Afghanistan, while multiple threats on the Southwest border continue to increase. Americans are expressing growing concerns over organized crime and international terrorism and the U.S. government's apparent inability to secure the Southwest border in the face of those threats. It is time for the United States to examine the National Guard's role and mission in relation to defending the homeland. In a time of significant budget cuts and downsizing of all government organizations, the use of the National Guard to permanently augment the Department of Homeland Security is a viable option. The National Guard can contribute additional capabilities and capacities in equipment and manpower to augment the Border Patrol and help fill gaps in border security. The gains made by the National Guard since 911 have been exponential, and a reversal to the pre-911 era of strategic reserve status will make the National Guard less relevant. It is time to define the role and mission of the National Guard on the Southwest border.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Mar 22, 2012
Accession Number
ADA561204

Entities

People

  • Tim Lawson

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Air Platforms
  • Biomedical
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Human Systems

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Border Security
  • Crime
  • Criminals
  • Department Of Homeland Security
  • Governments
  • Homeland Security
  • Law
  • National Security
  • Personnel Management
  • Police
  • Societies
  • Terrorism
  • Undocumented Noncitizens
  • United States
  • Unmanned Aerial Systems
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Military Mobilization and Reserve Forces Studies.
  • Strategic Security Studies