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Why Trump is sending Marines to Florida, Texas and Louisiana - Here's what is going to happen
President Donald Trump's administration is sending 200 Marines to Florida, with additional deployments expected in Louisiana and Texas
President Donald Trump's administration is sending 200 Marines to Florida, with additional deployments expected in Louisiana and Texas, the US Northern Command revealed on Thursday. The command further added that these Marines will support ICE in deportation raids. It is unclear when the fresh operations will begin.
“Approximately 200 Marines from Marine Wing Support Squadron 272, Marine Corps Air Station New River, North Carolina, are conducting a movement to Florida, to augment U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) interior immigration enforcement mission with critical administrative and logistical capabilities at locations as directed by ICE,” the press release read.
The Northern Command noted that this was in response to a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) request received May 9.
“The Secretary of Defense approved a mobilization of up to 700 Active, National Guard, and Reserve component forces operating under Title 10 authority,” the statement added.
The Northern Command, however, clarified that service members will ‘perform strictly non-law enforcement duties within ICE facilities’.
“Their roles will focus on administrative and logistical tasks, and they are specifically prohibited from direct contact with individuals in ICE custody or involvement in any aspect of the custody chain."
This deployment aligns with Trump’s mass deportation agenda, funded by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, expected to be signed on July 4, which allocates $4.5 trillion for border security, including 10,000 new ICE agents and 3,000 Border Patrol agents, effective in fiscal year 2026.
The move follows the deployment of 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines to Los Angeles in June to quell violent protests against ICE raids, where cars were burned and buildings vandalized.
Unlike California, no protests are reported in Florida, Texas, or Louisiana as of yet. The 200 Marines in Florida are supporting ICE at facilities like the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport in the Everglades, dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz,” which opened this month, with several thousand beds, 200 security cameras, and 28,000 feet of barbed wire.
