Executive Order 14167

Clarifying the Military's Role in Protecting the Territorial Integrity of the United States

Signed January 20, 2025, printed at 90 FR 8613. 3 sections of substance, 780 words.

In plain English

This order gives the armed forces a bigger role at the border. It says guarding the border is a military job too.

Sec. 1. Purpose

(a) As Chief Executive and as Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the United States, I have no more solemn responsibility than protecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the United States along our national borders. The protection of a nation's territorial integrity and national boundaries is paramount for its security. (b) The Armed Forces of the United States have played a long and well-established role in securing our borders against threats of invasion, against unlawful forays by foreign nationals into the United States, and against other transnational criminal activities that violate our laws and threaten the peace, harmony, and tranquility of the Nation. These threats have taken a variety of forms over our Nation's history, but the Armed Forces have consistently played an integral role in protecting the sovereignty of the United States. (c) Threats against our

In plain English

This sets out the case the order makes. It calls guarding the border a solemn duty. It says the armed forces have long had that role. It names past threats of invasion and unlawful crossing. It says crime across borders is part of that. It says the role has held through the nation's history.

Sec. 2. Policy

It is the policy of the United States to ensure that the Armed Forces of the United States prioritize the protection of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the United States along our national borders.

In plain English

This states the policy. The armed forces must put border protection first. The country's sovereignty is the stated interest. So is the integrity of its land. The duty runs along the national borders. That task ranks above other work.

Sec. 3. Implementation

The Secretary of Defense shall: (a) No later than 10 days from the effective date of this order, deliver to the President a revision to the Unified Command Plan that assigns United States Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) the mission to seal the borders and maintain the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and security of the United States by repelling forms of invasion including unlawful mass migration, narcotics trafficking, human smuggling and trafficking, and other criminal activities. (b) On the effective date of this order, add the following requirements to the Contingency Planning Guidance and Guidance for the Employment of the Force: (i) A Level 3 planning requirement for USNORTHCOM to seal the borders and maintain the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and security of the United States by repelling forms of invasion, including unlawful mass migration, narcotics trafficking, human

In plain English

This tells Defense to act. Within 10 days it must revise the command plan. That plan gives one command the border task. The task is to seal the border and hold the line. It covers mass crossing, drugs and smuggling. New planning rules are added the same day.

Sec. 4. General Provisions

Every order carries this. It is not what the order does.

(a) Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect: (i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or (ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals. (b) This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations. (c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person. <GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT> (Presidential Sig.) THE WHITE HOUSE, January 20, 2025. [FR Doc. 2025-02089 Filed 1-29-25; 11:15 am] Billing code 3395-F4-P </pre></body> </html>

In plain English

This is the closing clause that nearly every order carries. It says the order does not change what the law already allows. It also says no one can sue to enforce it.

How this order is quoted

Each section is quoted as the order prints it, under its own number and heading. Executive orders are United States government works and are not under copyright. Long sections are cut at a sentence and the whole order is a click away.