Amid mixed reports over whether the Pentagon is about to withdraw troops sent to the U.S.-Mexico border just two weeks ago, Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-El Paso) joined forces with Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) to press Defense Secretary Jim Mattis to end the mission and in the meantime, explain its scope and costs.
Their letter, released Tuesday, questions "the lack of a clear mission for the deployed troops, the cost of this operation, and the appearance that the President is using the military for partisan political purposes."
The letter was dated Monday, the same day the general overseeing the deployment said the troops won't be needed beyond Dec. 15 — a statement that critics took as evidence the mission was a stunt all along.
