EAGLE PASS, Texas — Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte announced Tuesday that he has asked the Montana National Guard to coordinate with Texas officials to identify what resources they need to secure the U.S.-Mexico border. 

What You Need To Know

  • Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte announced Tuesday that he has asked the Montana National Guard to coordinate with Texas officials to identify what resources they need to secure the U.S.-Mexico border

  • This comes after Gianforte and 13 other Republican governors visited Eagle Pass, a small town on the Rio Grande that has been a popular destination for migrants crossing the border, earlier this month

  • Some other Republican-led states that have promised to send their National Guardsmen include Indiana, Florida, Louisiana, Georgia and Missouri

This comes after Gianforte and 13 other Republican governors visited Eagle Pass, a small town on the Rio Grande that has been a popular destination for migrants crossing the border, earlier this month. 

In a news release, Gianforte said his directive allows the Montana National Guard “to work with Texas to identify ways the State of Montana can support Texas in its response, including identifying volunteers for a potential support mission.”

Gianforte isn’t the only Republican governor to promise aid to Texas. 

On Monday, Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb committed to deploying 50 Indiana National Guard troops to support Texas’ Operation Lone Star, a multibillion-dollar border security program. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis also offered up 1,000 Florida National Guardsmen and troops from the Florida State Guard, a paramilitary force that Desantis resurrected in 2021 after decades of dormancy. 

Some other states that have promised to send their National Guard troops are Louisiana, Georgia and Missouri, although Missouri Gov. Mike Parson has yet to officially announce what resources he plans to send to the border. 

“National security is the number one responsibility of the federal government, and President Joe Biden has left Americans and our country completely vulnerable with his failure to address the cartel-fueled surge in illegal immigration and drugs,” Gov. Gianforte said in his release. “While Biden refuses to do his job and enforce the immigration laws already on the books, the State of Montana will identify meaningful ways to support Governor Abbott and Texas in their efforts to secure the southern border.”

Republican governors across the nation have criticized the Biden administration’s handling of the border. On Tuesday, the Republican-controlled House voted to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas just one week after their failed attempt at impeachment, marking the first impeachment of a presidential adviser in nearly 150 years. 

In the Senate, a bipartisan border deal was proposed earlier this month, but it was shot down by congressional Republicans.

The standoff between the state of Texas and the Biden administration has been going on for a while now, with multiple court cases pending. Texas Democrats have even called on President Biden to federalize the state’s National Guard. 

One of the major places of contention between Abbott and Biden rests at the 47-acre Shelby Park in Eagle Pass. The municipal park was closed by state troopers in January, and the Biden administration claims Texas officials are barring U.S. Border Patrol agents entry to the park. 

At the local level, a group of Eagle Pass residents sent a letter to Abbott last week asking that he give back Shelby Park. The group said that the park has been “transformed into a military-style staging ground.”

Gov. Abbott has doubled down on his border security efforts and has said he plans to expand control of the border from beyond Shelby Park.