NJ Won't Send National Guard To Border Due To Family Separation

New Jersey will not deploy the state's National Guard resources to the southern border until the current policy of separating children from their parents ceases, the Murphy administration announced Wednesday.

Gov. Phil Murphy joined governors of both parties in several East Coast states in rejecting the policy that has caused a public outcry in recent weeks, after U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions ordered prosecutors to immediately adopt a zero-tolerance policy for illegal border crossings.

New Jersey currently doesn't have any National Guard personnel on the southern border, the Murphy administration confirmed to Patch Wednesday. But Murphy signed an executive order Tuesday to prohibit any state resources from being used to assist in the Trump administration's policy of detaining immigrant parents and separating them from their children.

That position means New Jersey won't send National Guard resources to the border, the Murphy administration told Patch.

“Ever since our founding – and even before – our nation has been a beacon for families seeking freedom and yearning for a better life. President Trump has turned this promise on its head by doubling-down on his inhumane and cruel policy of separating families,” said Murphy.

“It has no basis in law or scripture, no matter how many times the president, the vice president, or anyone who tries to defend this policy tries to spin it. This is a matter of human rights, human dignity, and basic humanity.”

On its website, in a segment last updated on June 15, U.S. Customs and Border Protection explains that families crossing the border together will be separated. Children as young as babies and toddlers are included in the policy, and are being sent to "tender age" shelters, the Associated Press reported.

The Trump Administration has said the Democrats are responsible for the policy, citing a 1997 court settlement and a 2008 law as loopholes that mandate the practice. However, neither actually mandate family separation, The New York Times, NPR, and several news outlets have reported in numerous fact-checking articles.

Governors of both sides of the aisle have joined Murphy and Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf in taking action by refusing resources that they say would further the practice. Maryland's Republican Governor Larry Hogan Republican announced Tuesday he had ordered that state's National Guard resources to return from the border.

Democratic Delaware Governor John Carney said Tuesday he rejected a request to send National Guard resources to the border. "Under normal circumstances, we wouldn't hesitate to answer the call. But given what we know about the policies currently in effect at the border, I can't in good conscience send Delawareans to help with that mission," Carney said via Twitter.

The actions have been described as symbolic and political, and will likely not stop the practice from continuing.

In recent days, the public tenor surrounding the policy has reached a fever pitch, with the release of emotional audio from the border of families in the process of being separated. The outcry has prompted several lawmakers to issue positions on the policy.

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