RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Gov. Roy Cooper says he’s bringing home the three North Carolina National Guard members currently working at the U.S.-Mexico border because of the Trump administration’s policy of separating immigrant children from their families.
Cooper said Tuesday he made the decision because “the cruel policy of tearing children away from their parents requires a strong response.”
Cooper’s office says the state’s current deployment included a helicopter. The North Carolina National Guard has sent service members to the southern border during previous presidential administrations.
Cooper joins Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam in recalling National Guard members stationed at the U.S./Mexico border.
Governors from Maryland, Delaware, Massachusetts, New York, Rhode Island, Connecticut also announced this week they’ll withhold or recall National Guard troops from the border.
Separately, North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein is one of 20 attorneys general who signed a letter Tuesday asking U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions to end the current policy, calling it “inhumane” and raising serious concerns about children’s rights
