DC Mayor Bowser renews call for DC National Guard assistance amid influx of migrants



Washington D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat, is asking for the D.C. National Guard to be deployed to help the city contend with the influx of migrants arriving in the region, a request that comes after the city's prior request for D.C. National Guard assistance was denied.

"The District of Columbia writes to provide additional information to support our July 19 request to deploy the DC National Guard (DCNG) to help prevent a prolonged humanitarian crisis in our nation's capital resulting from the daily arrival of migrants in need of assistance," Bowser wrote in an August 11 letter to U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.

\u201cWe need help from our federal partners as we seek to stabilize and manage our operating environment in this critical moment.\n\nI have been honored to work with the men and women of the DC National Guard many times and today we renewed our request for their assistance.\u201d
— Mayor Muriel Bowser (@Mayor Muriel Bowser) 1660253923

Month after month the nation's southern border is inundated by massive flows of migrants coming into the country.

But some migrants have been heading to D.C. from the states of Texas and Arizona, where the states' Republican governors have been busing migrants who voluntarily take the trip.

In a letter last month, Christopher Rodriguez, the director of the D.C. Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency, requested the help of the D.C. National Guard on behalf of Mayor Bowser. The letter declared that "the Governors of Texas and Arizona are making a political statement to the federal government, and instead, their actions are having direct impacts on city and regional resources in ways that are unsustainable."

\u201c9 days since @MayorBowser requested @SecDef @ @POTUS activate @DCNationalGuard DC has received no answer. @nbcwashington\u201d
— Mark Segraves (@Mark Segraves) 1659025732

That request was later rebuffed by the Defense Department, which is why Bowser is now trying again.

In the new letter requesting the D.C. National Guard, Bowser wrote that, "our hope is that the DCNG can aid in strengthening local efforts beginning August 22 and extending for the next 90 days. We need help from our federal partners as we seek to stabilize and manage our operating environment in this critical moment."

Far-left DC mayor requests National Guard to help with 'humanitarian crisis' of 4,000 illegals who've been bused to nation's capital — a sanctuary city



Far-left Washington D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser requested the National Guard to help with what she called the "humanitarian crisis" of 4,000 illegal immigrants who've been bused to the nation's capital — a sanctuary city — over the last several months.

What are the details?

Bowser, a Democrat, made the National Guard activation request in a July 19 letter to the office of the Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin and in a July 22 letter to White House aides, WRC-TV reported:

\u201c9 days since @MayorBowser requested @SecDef @ @POTUS activate @DCNationalGuard DC has received no answer. @nbcwashington\u201d
— Mark Segraves (@Mark Segraves) 1659025732

"The migrant crisis facing our city and our country through cruel political gamesmanship from the Governors of Texas and Arizona must be dealt with at the federal level,” the July 22 letter reads, according to WRC.

Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott earlier this year began chartering buses to send migrants to D.C. and other sanctuary cities, the station said, but aid groups said there are not enough resources available for them in the nation's capital.

Image source: WRC-TV video screenshot

Bowser said the 4,000 migrants who've arrived so far in D.C. is a “humanitarian crisis” that has reached a “tipping point," WRC reported, adding that the city hasn't received a response to its National Guard request as of Thursday.

Republican U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas agreed with Bowser's assessment in a Thursday tweet — and added a zinger for the mayor:

\u201cDC Mayor\u2014rightly\u2014calls massive influx of illegal aliens a \u201chumanitarian crisis.\u201d\n\nShe says w/ 4000 arriving in DC, we\u2019re \u201cat a tipping point.\u201d\n\nIf 4000 is a tipping point, what the hell do you call the THREE & A HALF MILLION illegal immigrants who\u2019ve crossed our southern border??\u201d
— Ted Cruz (@Ted Cruz) 1659026509

"If 4,000 is a tipping point, what the hell do you call the THREE & A HALF MILLION illegal immigrants who’ve crossed our southern border??" Cruz wondered.

Anything else?

Bowser also requested the use of the DC Armory — a multipurpose events venue — as a processing center, WRC said.

On Wednesday, immigration agents found 73 migrants living in houses operated by human smugglers in Northwest D.C., the station said, citing internal documents NBC News reviewed. WRC said it's unclear why so many migrants were being kept in what appear to be stash houses in D.C.