Gov. Scott Walker commits to send Wisconsin National Guard to Mexican border if Trump asks

MADISON - Calling for more training exercises on the Mexican border, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker committed to sending troops there from the state's National Guard if asked by President Donald Trump's administration.

"Absolutely. Not only would I do it, I would take it a step further," Walker told conservative host Jay Weber on WISN radio.

The GOP governor said he would like to see National Guard troops combine training on the border with a mission to patrol the frontier and deter crossings and crime.

Spokeswoman Amy Hasenberg said that without a federal order, Walker couldn't provide numbers on either the cost of the mission or the number of troops who would go. The state will do so if and when an order arrives, she said.

The New York Times has reported that governors and presidents of both political parties have deployed the National Guard to the Mexican border to help respond to problems there.

But U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) said Friday that the Trump administration is proposing to deploy thousands of National Guard troops at a time of "historically low border crossings." That amounts to a cynical political move that isn't based on actual need and that Walker should reject, Pocan wrote in a letter to to the governor Friday.

"Our service members in Wisconsin should not be used as pawns while President Trump attempts to rally his base after Congress has repeatedly rejected his demands to build a border wall," Pocan wrote in his letter.

Walker rejected that argument on WISN Monday morning, arguing that as president both George W. Bush and Barack Obama deployed Guard troops to the border. In a statement, Walker said the border is "not secure" and needs more reinforcement.

At Bellin Hospital Monday, the governor signed two measures to fight the spread of opioid addiction in Wisconsin.

Assembly Bill 906 puts more than $3.5 million over two years toward a number of programs, including one that provides treatment to inmates who are being released from jail. Assembly Bill 907 expands the University of Wisconsin System’s graduate psychiatric nursing program and provides online training to social workers who handle cases involving substance abuse.

In the interview with Weber, Walker acknowledged the challenges that he and other Republicans faced in an elections year that has trended Democratic in the races held so far around the country.

"This election is going to be tougher than even the recall election was," Walker said, referencing the 2012 race in which he became the first governor in American history to survive a recall vote.

The governor said he is stressing to voters the fact that he's the elected official at the top of the November ballot in Wisconsin, not Trump.

But Pocan said Monday that with the Guard decision, Walker is essentially joining his position with the president's.

"Governor Walker, your support of President Trump’s plan for border security is wrong for Wisconsin and you should reverse course on this decision immediately," Pocan said in a statement.