President-elect Donald Trump confirmed on Monday that he plans to declare a national emergency on border security and use the US military to carry out a mass deportation of undocumented migrants.
Immigration was a top issue in the election campaign, and Trump has promised to deport millions and stabilise the border with Mexico after record numbers of migrants crossed illegally during President Joe Biden’s administration.
On his social media platform Truth Social, Trump amplified a recent post by a conservative activist that said the president-elect was “prepared to declare a national emergency and will use military assets to reverse the Biden invasion through a mass deportation programme”.
Alongside the repost, Trump commented: “True!”
Trump sealed a remarkable comeback to the presidency in his November 5 defeat of Democratic Vice-President Kamala Harris.
He has been announcing a cabinet featuring immigration hardliners, naming former Immigration and Customs Enforcement acting chief Tom Homan as his “border tsar”.