Sovereignty defines the nation state, and sovereignty is defined by defensible borders.
The United States is a sovereign nation with defensible borders—a homeland that protects our national interests, defends our distinctly American people, and promotes lasting peace and prosperity. We are not a borderless, globalist economic zone. But we have to make an intentional, purposeful decision to defend our border and protect the homeland that we cherish.
For the past four years, the Biden administration made a calculated decision to throw open our borders and invite unmitigated chaos. Millions of illegal immigrants crossed our southern border unchecked. These weren’t just peaceful migrants looking for economic stability and a better future, either. President Joe Biden allowed hardened criminals, rapists, murderers, child predators, and members of violent drug cartels and foreign terrorist organizations to cross our border with impunity.
Customs and Border Protection reported that between 2021 and 2023, 382 illegal aliens on the terrorist watch list attempted to enter our country, and 99 of these individuals were released into the homeland. More than 400 illegal aliens from Central Asian countries involved in an ISIS-affiliated human trafficking organization were operating freely within our borders. DHS even released 729 Special Interest Aliens from Iran, the largest state sponsor of terrorism in the world, into the heartland with nothing more than a court date 10 years in the future.
We suffered through the worst invasion of our homeland since the War of 1812, as the Biden administration treated our southern border as little more than an imaginary line in the Yuma desert. This was a calculated choice—an intentional sabotage meant to unleash chaos in the American heartland.
In November, the American people rejected this orchestrated erasure of our border. President Donald Trump won the popular vote in large part because he promised to end the chaos and return to sanity. He promised to defend our borders once again and restore our national sovereignty. Part of that promise included deploying our military to retake our border.
The president’s done exactly as he promised. The border is secure. Our sovereignty is restored. The chaos is over.
Since President Trump’s inauguration, illegal border crossings have dropped 99 percent—the lowest level in decades. In June, the Department of Homeland Security reported the fewest border crossings in Customs and Border Protection history. Compared to June 2024, gotaways were down 90 percent, and there were fewer apprehensions in the entire month of June 2025 than there had been in the first two days of June 2024. Border Patrol recorded the lowest single-day total in 25 years on June 28—only 137 apprehensions. Zero illegal aliens have been released into the U.S. interior each of the last two months, a far cry from the outrageous statistics under President Biden.
This is an accomplishment we must celebrate as a nation. It required an understanding of the American homeland, great political will, and firm resolve to turn the tide.
While most Americans are familiar with the important work our ICE and Border Patrol agents have done to stem this crisis, many don’t know that our military servicemen and women have also played an immense role in reclaiming our sovereignty. These brave troops deployed to the border, surging into the chaos to defend our homeland, turn back the invasion, and secure the border.
This was no typical humanitarian mission, and that’s why I believe it merits a dedicated service medal that reflects and properly honors the valiant work our troops have done to secure our homeland and defend the American way of life.
I am proud to be leading the effort in Congress to recognize the invaluable contributions of our troops in support of the border mission. My bill, the Faithful Patriot Campaign Medal Act, will properly honor these men and women for their heroic efforts with the Faithful Patriot Campaign Medal, which recognizes all troops who have participated in the border security mission since President Trump first initiated Operation Faithful Patriot in October 2018, and in all subsequent border missions.
In March, I traveled to the southern border to see the efforts to end the chaos and restore our sovereignty firsthand. While there, I had the privilege of meeting several West Virginia National Guardsmen who were deployed to the front lines of the border crisis. They were thousands of miles from home, volunteering to combat violent cartel members, terrorists, smugglers, traffickers, and other dangerous criminals to restore what our nation lost, to restore order to a nation that had been intentionally subjected to destructive chaos.
In just a few short months, these American heroes have completely reversed President Biden’s border crisis. These brave troops devoted themselves to addressing a dire national security threat, and they deserve the honor and recognition of the United States for their valor and sacrifice.
Compare this to the Biden administration, which repeatedly demonized the individuals who defended our southern border. Just look at the bogus allegations made by Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, repeated as fact by Democrats in Congress and their allies in the media, that border agents were whipping and abusing migrants. This turned out to be a total hoax, but the effort to demonize the patriotic Americans tasked with securing our border had already taken root.
It is now all the more important for us to reverse course and honor those who are making the sacrifice to restore our homeland and protect our national interests, especially our brave troops.
President Trump was right to deploy the military to end the invasion and restore our national sovereignty. Thanks to President Trump’s leadership, and our brave service members’ efforts, we have returned the promise of our homeland to the American people. Now is the time to honor the unsung heroes of this mission, our service members, with the campaign medal they have rightly earned.
Riley Moore, a Republican, represents West Virginia’s Second District in the U.S. House of Representatives.
The views expressed in this article are the writer’s own.
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