Washington, D.C. – House Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Adam Smith (D-WA) released the following statement about reports that President Trump is withdrawing some of the military forces he recently sent to the border:

“The reports that President Trump is planning to withdraw some of the troops he sent to the border two weeks ago indicate just how empty, demagogic, and racially motivated this political stunt was. It appears to be an admission that there was no justification for the mission in the first place. It was not a respectful use of our military to take service members away from their duties and send them to the border as politicized props, and President Trump should not have done it. And there remains no rational explanation for the presence of those active duty troops who remain on the border. They should all be returned to their regular duties.”

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