BORDER/ELECTION/IMMIGRATION/MEXICO/MILITARY/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump claimed that up to 15,000 US troops could be sent to the border to deal with the group of approximately 3,500 migrants heading toward the US through Mexico. The migrants, who are more than 800 miles away from the US, are weeks away from arriving at the border, where many reportedly plan to follow legal procedures and seek asylum…The Pentagon has already announced 5,200 active duty troops are being sent to the border and has identified an additional 2,000 that could go. There are currently 2,100 National Guardsmen on duty at the border and an additional 2,000 could be called upon to go if needed…Yet Trump’s announcement Wednesday that ‘up to 15,000’ troops will be sent to the border has only fueled scrutiny from critics who have condemned the deployment as a political stunt by a President eager to fire up his political base just days away from the midterm elections. Many have pointed out that Trump’s latest figure exceeds the number of US troops currently serving in Afghanistan, which stands at approximately 14,000.”
–Allie Malloy and Zachary Cohen, “Trump says up to 15,000 troops could go to the border,” CNN Politics, CNN.com, October 31, 2018 7:43 pm