Texas National Guard muzzles troops posted at ICE facility near San Antonio
In advance of a planned visit by members of Congress, Texas National Guard troops stationed in an ICE facility in South Texas have been ordered not to answer questions from elected officials or the media about their activities.
The San Antonio Express-News viewed an image of the written order from the Texas Military Department, which oversees the National Guard.
The order bars guard personnel from speaking publicly about their mission in support of ICE and says “all media inquiries, Congressional inquiries and internal inquiries regarding this operation” must be referred to the guard’s public affairs office. It also instructs guard members to avoid “speculation or discussion of the mission with unauthorized individuals.”
U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro, a Democrat from San Antonio, is scheduled to visit the South Texas ICE Processing Center in Pearsall on Friday, along with Rep. Maxine Dexter, an Oregon Democrat. The facility is in Frio County, 55 miles southwest of San Antonio.
Asked about the order silencing the guard troops, Castro said he suspected it came down after the Express-News, quoting the congressman, reported on Wednesday that Texas guard members in civilian clothes were “embedded” in ICE facilities to support the Trump administration's campaign to detain and deport immigrants.
https://www.expressnews.com/news/article/joaquin-castro-ice-detention-center-pearsall-guard-21336462.php