U.S. Senators Mazie K. Hirono and Elizabeth Warren have raised concerns about the Department of Defense’s (DOD) recent operations related to immigration enforcement at the southern border and Naval Station Guantanamo Bay. In a letter to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, they questioned the cost implications and impact on military readiness.
President Trump, on his first day in office, issued an Executive Order directing the United States Northern Command (NORTHCOM) to enhance border security. Subsequently, he instructed DOD to expand the Migrant Operations Center at Guantanamo Bay to its full capacity of 30,000. As a result, approximately 2,000 active-duty troops have been deployed to the southern border.
The senators expressed concern over DOD’s increased involvement in deportation flights following Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) policy reversal on using military aircraft for deportations. They highlighted that military aircraft used for these operations are significantly more expensive than commercial alternatives.
“[DoD’s] new immigration-related operations place significant—and unnecessary—burdens on DoD resources, personnel, and readiness,” wrote Hirono and Warren.
They pointed out that previous deployments had negatively affected military readiness and morale. “Likewise, we are concerned about how these operations may impact servicemembers’ morale,” noted the lawmakers.
The senators criticized what they see as militarization of immigration enforcement by the Trump administration: “[T]he Trump administration is militarizing the country’s immigration enforcement system in an apparent attempt to signal toughness.”
Hirono and Warren requested detailed information from DOD regarding troop deployment costs and their impact by February 27, 2025.
