US | National Guard Feds Will Pay for 4K National Guard Personnel at US Border Mattis approved the move Friday night By Newser Editors and Wire Services Posted Apr 7, 2018 1:30 PM CDT Copied In this Jan. 19, 2007 file photo, a National Guard unit patrols the US-Mexico border in Sasabe, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, file) Defense Secretary Jim Mattis has approved using Defense Department money to pay for as many as 4,000 National Guard personnel to perform border security missions as requested by President Trump, the AP reports. Mattis made the decision Friday night. It means the federal government will foot the bill for the National Guard missions, which will be performed under the command and control of the participating states. A Pentagon memo said the authorization is valid through the current budget year, which ends Sept. 30. It did not indicate how much the missions are expected to cost. The memo said the National Guard personnel will not perform law enforcement functions or "interact with migrants or other persons detained by" the Department of Homeland Security without Mattis's approval. It said "arming will be limited to circumstances that might require self-defense," but it did not further define that. Read These Next James Carville has a new 4-word political mantra. More big names lend support to Stephen Colbert. "Theo" from The Cosby Show has died at age 54. Eleven arrested following viral video of honor killing. Report an error