Notes from the field: Senator Erin Tobin joins Governor Noem at Southern Border tour

On Thursday I was asked to travel with the Governor to the Southern border. 3 legislators, myself included, headed to Texas in the early morning to talk to our South Dakota National Guard.

This last legislative session, the Governor came to the legislature to talk to us about the crisis at the border. She walked through what she had seen at the border and what statistics were coming in regarding sex trafficking, smuggling of fentanyl into the US, and cartel activity. We passed a resolution to support our SD National Guard at the border and to make clear that the border is an American crisis and a SD crisis. We pre-funded the efforts of the National Guard in our budget this year and we were the only state to have done this.

I wanted this process to be transparent and to understand what our SD National Guard was specifically doing there and see what the results of that legislative effort was making at the Southern border. Right before we left, I found out that the 155th Engineering company based out of Wagner is currently working on site. We have 3 x 30-day rotations planned.

We arrived at Del Rio, Texas just after lunch and headed to where our SD troops were working. When driving to the site, I spoke with the Lieutenant, a PHD student at SDSU majoring in Animal Science specifically interested in bovine embryology, who filled me in on the day-to-day responsibilities of the unit, the condition of their base, and even the food that they are eating while there. She told me the SD base is in a great location and they feel safe and supported.

When we arrived at the site, it was 103 degrees and a very high humidity level. The first step completed by the Guard was to clear out vegetation to allow a place where the fence could go. Our Wagner unit was placing a smaller fence with barbs on it and a larger fence behind this with razor wire at the top.

I spoke with our troops, some who will be staying the whole 90 days and some who just started their rotation. I talked with troops from Platte, Corsica, Stickney, and Wagner. They explained that the Texas National Guard will lay out all the fencing supplies in front of them and the SD guard will come behind and pound posts and install the fence. The troops also explained that when they arrived, they decided to use a skid steer to push posts in, making the process much more efficient. Our SD troops obviously have a strong work ethic and know how to make the job more efficient. They also explained that they felt safe during their time on site, as the cartel activity has moved away from the places where the fence is being installed as they chose the easiest border pass areas.

I also asked them what it was like to leave their families and work for this amount of time. One soldier from Platte explained that he had just hired someone prior to this deployment so his business is continuing back home, but he is excited to get back to his business and family. They are reimbursed well for their time and the unit works well together. They feel like they are making a difference, and they are proud to be serving such an important need for our Country and the State of SD.

We also made a stop to talk to the border patrol, who ride horseback to monitor and curtail illegal immigrants from crossing. The cartel controls every mile of the border, and the immigrants must pay the cartel to pass through. They will sometimes lead them across and sometimes will arrange for a ride on the other side. The cartel will force women and children to cross the river so that the border patrol has to rescue them from drowning or detain them while drugs are moving across the river a few miles away.

I found out that:

• Since 2021, the border patrol has been exhausting their efforts. Since January of this year, they have started to feel like they are making more of an impact.
• In this 240-mile patrol zone alone, the cartel takes in about 22 million dollars/week, from illegals, by smuggling people across.

Other statistics:

• As of March 2024, Operation lone star has seized 469 million lethal doses of fentanyl and there have been 503,800 migrant apprehensions.
• 25 states are now supporting Texas and 14 states are sending troops.
• 72% of those trafficked in the US are immigrants.
• 60% of unaccompanied alien children are caught by the cartels and exploited through sex or drug trafficking and 150,000 unaccompanied children cross in the last year.

The decision we made as a legislature was paramount to South Dakota. I am so thankful we have our SD National Guard at the border to serve and protect. I can tell you we have the best of the best at the border protecting us. This is not only a drug crisis that affects every single State in the Union, but also a humanitarian crisis. Thank you to our SD National Guard and to the 155th Engineering Company out of Wagner for all you do, and for taking the time to host us SD legislators and answer our questions. Our National Guard is making a positive impact that will save lives across the nation and in South Dakota.

Thank you to our troops.

God Bless,
Senator Tobin