President Trump plans to swiftly deploy elements of the American military to the southern border, beginning the crackdown that he had promised from the first day he launched his campaign more than two years ago. The president-elect will also end some Biden-era programs that allowed millions of migrants to be paroled and settled into the country. 

Mr. Trump’s promise of the largest deportation operation in American history was one of the major pillars of his campaign, and unlike 2017 when his administration was staffed by political neophytes, he and his team have had four years during this interregnum to begin drafting executive orders. 

Mr. Trump’s planned executive actions were first reported by Fox News. 

One of his first priorities will be to direct the deployment of military personnel to the southern border to help stem the flow of illegal immigration. Those assets will assist with the re-implementation of Mr. Trump’s “Remain in Mexico” policy, which requires asylum seekers to wait on the southern side of the Mexican-American border while their case is adjudicated by an immigration judge, rather than allowing them to be paroled into the country while they wait for final judgment. 

“This Executive Order sends a clear message that the United States intends to exercise it’s sovereignty over its land and borders and that the Armed Forces have a role to play in protecting our borders,” a source told Fox. 

Mr. Trump will then declare foreign cartels and gangs like MS-13 and Tren de Aragua as foreign terrorist organizations, which will allow the federal government to take a more active role in issuing sanctions, conducting prosecutions, and restricting entry of gang and cartel members, all while raising awareness about threats posed by the groups.