Obama sending troops to southern border

**AngryVoter** · 26-05-2010, 02:35 AM

I can't believe he actually did it. Obama is sending 1,200 National Guard troops to help protect the southern border between the U.S. and Mexico. Hopefully this means he's getting serious about the issue.

**Tantal** · 26-05-2010, 05:47 PM

Run the numbers. With only 1,200 NG troops, once you divide them into shifts and factor in days off, there will be less than 300 troops on-duty at any given time. The border between Mexico and the U.S. is 1,969 miles long. This comes out to one soldier per 6.5 miles. Since they'll be working in groups, that's even less ground that they can cover. Further, reports are coming in that they'll only be in administrative and support roles. If he were serious about the issue, he'd throw 10,000 combat-ready troops down there. My fear is that we're going to send a bunch of rear-echelon types down there that will find themselves in a firefight with the Zetas and get themselves killed.

**Don** · 26-05-2010, 07:35 PM

Originally Posted by Tantal

Run the numbers. With only 1,200 NG troops, once you divide them into shifts and factor in days off, there will be less than 300 troops on-duty at any given time. The border between Mexico and the U.S. is 1,969 miles long. This comes out to one soldier per 6.5 miles. Since they'll be working in groups, that's even less ground that they can cover. Further, reports are coming in that they'll only be in administrative and support roles. If he were serious about the issue, he'd throw 10,000 combat-ready troops down there. My fear is that we're going to send a bunch of rear-echelon types down there that will find themselves in a firefight with the Zetas and get themselves killed.

From an article in the Christian Science Monitor:

Obama administration officials said the troops won’t conduct searches for illegal immigrants, but will gather intelligence, work on surveillance support and train local law enforcement.

And since when do local law enforcement have anything to learn from Nat. Guard troops, except possibly infantry tactics, but I doubt it. Sounds like you may be right Tantal, mostly eyewash.