Posted: | February 8, 2024 10:31 AM |
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From: | Senator Doug Mastriano and Sen. Greg Rothman, Sen. Camera Bartolotta, Sen. Chris Gebhard, Sen. Cris Dush, Sen. Joe Pittman, Sen. Kristin Phillips-Hill, Sen. Michele Brooks, Sen. Tracy Pennycuick, Sen. Kim L. Ward |
To: | All Senate members |
Subject: | Resolution Calling on Governor Shapiro to offer the Services of the Pennsylvania National Guard in Support of Operation Lone Star |
In the near future, we will introduce a Resolution calling on Governor Shapiro to offer the services of the PA National Guard to deploy to Texas in support of “Operation Lone Star.” Texas Gov. Greg Abbott initiated Operation Lone Star in March 2021 in response to the unprecedented rise in illegal immigration. Operation Lone Star personnel work to detect and repel illegal crossings, arrest human smugglers and cartel gang members, and stop the flow of deadly drugs like fentanyl. In May 2023, Abbott sent letters to all US governors requesting support for Operation Lone Star. So far, 14 states – Arkansas, Florida, Iowa, Idaho, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and Wyoming – have responded and deployed personnel and resources to secure the border. Reckless federal government policies have created a crisis at our nation’s southern border and every state is now a border state. Pennsylvania has a compelling interest to help secure the southern border. Fentanyl has flooded communities throughout our commonwealth, school districts are increasingly burdened, and strained social safety net funds are being diverted from legal citizens. More than 276 years ago, Benjamin Franklin founded what is now our PA National Guard to provide a common defense of Pennsylvania in times of crisis. The lawlessness on the U.S. southern border, and its impacts upon the people of Pennsylvania, constitutes a crisis that calls for this response. Please join us as a co-sponsor. |
Introduced as SR251