On April 11, 2025, President Donald Trump granted the U.S. military permission to occupy federal lands along the border between the United States and Mexico. (Per The Guardian) The declared purpose of this decision is to increase border security and fight illegal immigration by giving the Department of Defense more power over areas such as the Roosevelt Reservation. Additionally, it permits military members to hold undocumented immigrants until they are taken into custody by immigration officials.
However, this action presents significant issues, mainly among them the erosion of key factors of democracy and, moreover, represents a greater administrative overreach. The administration avoids the Posse Comitatus Act, which, in short, basically restricts military engagement in domestic matters, by using the military in capacities often assigned to civilian law enforcement. A common indicator of democratic backsliding is the blurring of the boundaries between military and civilian duties, where national security is invoked as an excuse to consolidate authority in the hands of the executive. And the President’s current course of action in this regard is a primary example of this.

This raises concerns as the United States already possesses federal agencies like Customs and Border Protection and ICE. Moreover, the government undermines accountability and institutional expertise by excluding those with immigration enforcement training. Checks and balances, which are the cornerstone of a functioning democracy, are eroded when too much power is centralized in one branch of government, and this a very case of that.
Additionally, this action creates a risky precedent by deploying the military to handle domestic policy issues. This undermines democratic safeguards. By this, I mean that despite the issue of militarizing the border being a seemingly minor factor, it is, in fact, an example of democratic erosion through the aspect that, despite its subtlety, it is rather an example of a classic authoritarian power grab. It’s a clear-cut example of executive aggrandizement, which is where leaders elected through democratic means expand their authority while maintaining a face of legality.
As mentioned in terms of democratic backsliding, leaders in fragile democracies often exploit emergencies, whether economic, public health or security related, to bypass normal legislative channels. That’s exactly what’s happening here. Immigration is being framed as a crisis in order to justify extraordinary measures.
When seen in the bigger picture, this type of behavior exhibited by The President is not unique nor stand alone, but moreover a component of a trend. What is meant by that is that current democratic institutions in the U.S. have been steadily eroding in recent years,  from undermining the press to contesting the judiciary’s independence, among many other actions. Bringing militarization to the border is another step in that direction or even just another domino to fall in this current cycle.  Also, not to harp on this notion much, but it is worth mentioning that The military is not prepared to manage civilian law enforcement or immigration policy, as this serves as a reminder that their main purpose is to fight threats abroad. Replacing specialized, accountable agencies with personnel who lack that expertise doesn’t just risk operational failure; it also shields the executive branch from oversight. The more often leaders bypass established norms and processes, the harder it becomes for Congress, the courts, or the public to hold them accountable.