Pentagon Chief: Border Security Needs Broader Approach – Associated Press
EL PASO, TEXAS - Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan said Saturday after visiting the U.S.-Mexico border that the government needs a broader, more effective approach to border control. He suggested the Pentagon might contribute with its expertise in surveillance and monitoring.
“How do we get out of treating the symptoms and get at the root of the issue,” Shanahan said in an interview while flying back to Washington.
Considering how the military could reinforce efforts to block drug smuggling and other illegal activity comes as the Pentagon weighs diverting billions of dollars for President Donald Trump’s border wall.
Shanahan said he was not volunteering the Pentagon to take over any part of border control, which is the responsibility of the Department of Homeland Security. But he said his visit led him to question whether there should be a “wholesale redesign” of the way border control is done by the federal government.
Shanahan said the Pentagon is willing to continue supporting the DHS but wants to see a longer-term solution.
“I don’t want to just add resources and not fix the problem,” he said…