ROMA, Texas – Standing on a high bank of the Rio Grande, Army Lt. Col. Ray Richards points to a stretch of river that was, until recently, one of the busiest spots for illegal border crossings from Mexico.
But on a recent afternoon, the area is quiet. American soldiers gather at a border monitoring post in Roma, Texas, where an infantry vehicle with camouflage netting sits between houses. A Blackhawk helicopter drops soldiers onto an island in the river, while U.S. Border Patrol agents breeze by on fan-propelled boats.
“At any given time, there would be multiple rafts full of people trying to get to this side,” Richards said of the area before U.S. forces made it a priority last year.
The Army has been inviting reporters to the Rio Grande Valley as it deploys hundreds more soldiers to the region this month by shifting some of the thousands of troops already serving along the 2,000-mile border. U.S. officials stated that the troop surge follows signs of elevated activity from drug cartels and has been accompanied by increased cooperation from the Mexican military. Recently, the U.S. Coast Guard encountered gunfire from the Mexican side of the river, prompting the Americans to return fire.
In this small patch at the southern edge of the United States, a slow saga is playing out — a curious mix of policing, policy, and politics.
Some question a troop surge just weeks before midterm elections. While Republicans face increasing headwinds because of President Donald Trump’s unpopularity, persistently high prices, and the fallout from the war in Iran, border security has remained a relative bright spot in Trump’s polling numbers, with about half of Americans saying they approve of his performance there.
However, experts raise concerns about the necessity of such a large military presence. They suggest that the troop buildup may be less about effective border strategy and more about political theater.
Illegal crossings have plummeted due in large part to asylum restrictions that began before Trump returned to the White House. A significant percentage of the fentanyl, cocaine, and heroin seized along the border is being smuggled through cars and trucks passing through checkpoints, not the areas in between.
David Shirk, a political science professor at the University of San Diego, commented, “I don’t dispute there’s some benefit to having personnel in areas at risk for people smuggling and drug trafficking. But the vast majority of that is now happening at ports of entry.”
Dessa Bergen-Cico, a public health professor at Syracuse University who studies drug trafficking, noted that street prices for cocaine and fentanyl remain low, suggesting that the drug flow is still unimpeded.
Yet, Army Maj. Gen. Curtis Taylor, who commands the military’s southern border task force, argues that their work is vital, particularly in targeting human trafficking. “The moral argument for the Army’s mission is dismantling this marketplace of human trafficking that is bringing people into the border,” Taylor stated. “An added benefit of that is there’s an awful lot of drugs moving with that human trafficking.”
Efforts to secure a former epicenter of illegal crossings are ongoing in Roma, a city of about 10,000 people. The area lacks a border wall in some places due to homes situated close to steep slopes along the Rio Grande. Directly across the water lies Miguel Alemán, a town in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas that has been plagued by decades of cartel violence. In some places, the distance across the river is merely a football field.
In 2021, Roma became a hub for illegal crossings when thousands of families and unaccompanied children sought asylum daily. Border crossings have sharply declined following President Joe Biden’s severe asylum restrictions introduced in 2024 and after Trump suspended asylum at the border.
After Trump resumed office in January 2025, the Army and Coast Guard expanded operations to support the Border Patrol, which remains the lead agency for border security. The Army now commands around 8,000 U.S. troops along the entire border, with additional personnel from the U.S. Coast Guard and Texas law enforcement.
Despite numerous obstacles, U.S. officials report that people still attempt to cross into Roma. A barrier of strung-together buoys, each the size of a hay bale, stretches along the river. Concertina wire lines the U.S. riverbank, while a surveillance blimp hovers overhead. A river island was recently cleared of trees that previously obscured individuals attempting to cross.
Army Sgt. Nathaniel Decker recounted seeing people on three rafts setting out from the Mexican side at dusk. He reported to Border Patrol that one group had cleared the buoys, and they were eventually apprehended near a house in Roma.
Mexico has also deployed additional troops. Under pressure from Trump, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has intensified the crackdown on crime compared to her predecessors. This month, Mexico sent 500 National Guard and military officers to Tamaulipas as part of a coordinated effort with the U.S. to prevent drug and human trafficking.
The Mexican deployment is based on intelligence gathered regarding the movements of criminal groups, according to a federal official in Mexico who requested anonymity. As part of the operation, the Mexican Army is utilizing two UH-60 helicopters, drones, and anti-drone technology.
The U.S. Coast Guard has also increased patrols on the Rio Grande, adding over 300 personnel in October of last year. During a recent incident, the Coast Guard encountered gunfire from the Mexican side of the river near Garceno, Texas, prompting a return of fire from the Americans.
U.S. Coast Guard Cmdr. Jeff Miller declined to provide additional details about the exchange of gunfire, stating that personnel are “working in a very challenging environment” and are authorized to use force to protect themselves.
On a recent patrol, the scene along the river was calm. A Coast Guard boat armed with machine guns cruised along the greenish water. Two men fished from a small boat nearby. A privately funded border wall, constructed from galvanized steel, lined the American side. Across the river, there was a park with soccer goal posts, homes, and a woman waving.
A Coast Guardsman, who opted to remain unnamed, noted that he has observed children on the Mexican side reacting excitedly, as if a fire truck were passing. Others have offered the Americans cold beer, while some have reacted with offensive gestures.
Joel Garcia, Border Patrol’s acting deputy chief patrol agent for the Rio Grande Valley, asserted that the agency has evidence proving the effectiveness of U.S. operations based on the quantity of
