400 troops sent to US-Mexico border after Trump's call

Arizona and Texas have announced that they will send 400 National Guard members to the US-Mexico border by next week in response to President Donald Trump's call for troops to fight drug trafficking and illegal immigration.

Arizona governor Doug Ducey said about 150 Guard members would deploy next week. And the Texas National Guard said it was already sending Guardsmen to the border, with plans to place 250 troops there in the next 72 hours. Two helicopters lifted off Friday night from Austin, the state capital, to head south.

The total remains well short of the 2,000 to 4,000 National Guard members that Mr Trump told reporters he wants to send. New Mexico governor Susana Martinez's office said that it had not yet deployed any guard members. The office of California governor Jerry Brown did not respond to questions about whether it would deploy troops.

Mr Trump's proclamation on Wednesday directing the use of National Guard troops refers to Title 32, a federal law under which Guard members receive federal pay and benefits, but remain under the command and control of their state's governor. This leaves open the possibility that California's Brown could turn him down.

Deployments...