Military says Kirtland and Fort Bliss being considered to hold migrants

Military personnel say Kirtland Air Force Base and Fort Bliss are on the Trump administration’s list of military installations where thousands of undocumented immigrants could be held amid proposed mass deportations.

A U.S. Customs and Border Protection official tamped down on the reports, however, saying no decision has been made and describing the rumblings as “fluff in the wind.”

On Thursday, New Mexico’s all-Democratic congressional delegation sent a letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, criticizing the plan to use the Albuquerque and El Paso-area bases and others “to create a nationwide network of military detention facilities.” The delegation’s letter was based on New York Times reporting from last month.

The dust-up comes as President Donald Trump repeatedly threatens mass deportation, a focal point of his campaign.

On Friday, Public Affairs Deputy Arturo Rodriguez, with the 1st Armored Division at Fort Bliss, told the Journal that New Mexico bases were being considered “for the feasibility to support up to 10,000 illegal aliens.” Fort Huachuca in Arizona and an ICE facility in Montana were among others being tossed around as options.

“What I can tell you now is that decision has not been made,” he said, adding that the discussions and decisions were being made “at higher echelons.”

“Here at Fort Bliss, I think we’ve been making the argument that the feasibility to support this is just not here,” Rodriguez said, later adding, “If we’re given an order, we’re told to execute. So at the end of the day, if Fort Bliss is chosen, ‘Hey, let me know what you want me to do.’ If it’s not chosen, then, cool.”

To his knowledge, Rodriguez said, the Department of Defense, at the behest of Trump, would “in about a week” hand responsibility for the “mission” to the 10th Mountain Division in Fort Drum, New York.

Emails, calls and questions to the 10th Mountain Division went unanswered.

The military public affairs units that did respond, from Kirtland Air Force Base and U.S. Northern Command, referred questions to the Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Those entities did not respond.

A spokesperson who works under Northern Command said they had been fielding many calls and there was confusion on the issue. He said he didn’t think 10th Mountain would be tasked with the mission but also didn’t know who might.

In a joint letter to Hegseth, New Mexico’s congressional delegation wrote that “this administration’s ‘solution’ to militarize immigration enforcement is abhorrent and inappropriately and unnecessarily creates a national security risk.”

The delegation said that using military bases for detainment would divert DOD resources “away from unit readiness” and, in the case of Kirtland, could affect research — nuclear and otherwise — conducted on base.

Due to the sensitive nature of the facilities and missions on KAFB, housing families and children there would be “highly reckless and pose significant security risks,” the letter states, adding that DOD resources should be instead put toward “border security initiatives that curb illicit activity and fentanyl trafficking.”

The delegation ended the letter, addressed to Trump and Hegseth, by saying, “We urge you to consider the consequences of these potential actions.”