Border militias under the first Trump administration flourished, emboldened by surging anti-immigrant and nativist rhetoric. The Oath Keepers, which was one of the biggest militias until its founder and dozens of its members were arrested for their roles in the January 6 Capitol riot, had long engaged in border activity. (This was a point of friction among some chapters, as some members felt like the border vigilantism undermined the authority of the Border Patrol and therefore ran counter to their respect for law enforcement.) The Proud Boys have reportedly deployed to the border. Anecdotally, smaller cells have also been reported to go out looking for people who’ve made unauthorized border crossings.
Over the years, many of these groups have operated with a carte blanche from local authorities. Sheriff Mark Lamb of Pinal County, Arizona, told the Los Angeles Times that he believes civilian operations along the border are constitutionally protected activity, but he acknowledged that having a bunch of armed guys running around in camo can occasionally create a headache for actual law enforcement, because “we don’t know who the good guys and the bad guys are oftentimes.” (Lamb is a Constitutional Sheriff, meaning he believes that sheriffs hold supreme authority and are answerable only to God, not the federal government).
Once Trump takes office, some paramilitary types hope they’ll have tacit authority from the government to engage in vigilante activity on the border. A Telegram group catering to self-identifying members of different militias has been abuzz with talk about Trump’s border plans. “I’m going to be extremely happy if they would deputize civilians in the war on invasion from the borders,” one member of the chat wrote. “Yes sir, I’ve been inquiring into that [with] some close to this admin,” someone responded. “Something has to be done as [the] issue is massive and manpower needed will be huge.” When someone suggested that militia members stand down operations, they were accused by another member of being a “fed” or a “victim of stand down psyops.”
“Anyone caught discouraging Patriots from uniting Constitutionally on a massive scale is suspect,” they wrote. “The basic premise of the Militia is to Constitutionally UNITE.” Another fantasized about how “patriots formerly (sic) trained” could deal with cartels on the border during Trump’s mass deportations.
These fantasies have also spilled out across social media. “The unconstitutional, illegal, intentional border invasion is the true insurrection, therefore the insurrection act should be used and the Militia/Military should be called up to put it down immediately,” one person wrote on Truth Social last week. “Godspeed MAGA Militia!!”
And the Proud Boys of South Texas reposted a meme showing a group of soldiers riding in the back of a truck, with the caption, “The boys and I when we’re deputized as ICE under Trump’s second term.”
For some, the idea of being deputized is more than a meme. “We’ll get word at the end of January about the plans,” says Foley. “We’ve told them, we’re all in if you want us, if you need help with intel, or recon. Just let us know.”