A internal memo circulated inside the Department of Homeland Security suggests that Trump’s use of the military for domestic law enforcement on immigration could soon get worse.
The memo lays out the need to persuade top Pentagon officials to get much more serious about using the military to combat illegal immigration
—and not just at the border.
It suggests that DHS is anticipating many more uses of the military in urban centers -- noting that L.A.-style operations may be needed “for years to come.”
And it likens the threat posed by transnational gangs and cartels to having “Al Qaeda or ISIS cells and fighters operating freely inside America,” -- hinting at a ramped-up militarized posture inside the interior.
“The memo is alarming, because it speaks to the intent to use the military within the United States at a level not seen since Japanese internment,”
Carrie Lee, senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund, said.
“The military is the most powerful, coercive tool our country has.
We don’t want the military doing law enforcement.
It absolutely undermines the rule of law.”

The memo was authored by Philip Hegseth
—the younger brother of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth
—who is a senior adviser to Homeland Security secretary Kristi Noem and DHS liaison officer to the Defense Department.
As such it also sheds light on Hegseth the Younger’s role,
which has been the subject of media speculationlabeling him an obscure but influential figure in his brother’s MAGA orbit.
The memo outlines the itinerary for a July 21 meeting between senior DHS and Pentagon officials, with the goal of better coordinating the agencies’ activities in “defense of the homeland.”
“Due to the sensitive nature of the meeting, minimal written policy or background information can be provided in this briefing memo,” the memo says.
Lee of the German Marshall Fund said this suggests “they understand that actions they’re taking are skirting the line.”
The primary goal of the meeting, the memo says, is to foster “new ideas for how the two departments can better plan for national security and illegal immigration.”
Then it adds this:
⭐️The U.S. military leadership (the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs and NORTHCOM) need to feel – for the first time – the urgency of the homeland defense mission. They need to understand the threat, what’s at stake, and the political importance the administration has placed on this issue.
⚠️Experts I spoke with were surprised at how bluntly that suggests DHS pressure on the Defense Department to get the military much more involved in immigration enforcement,
potential tension between top officials at both agencies over this imperative,
and possible resistance to it by Pentagon officials.
The memo says aligning both agencies this way “is a priority of POTUS,” meaning Trump.
https://newrepublic.com/article/198708/trump-military-anti-immigration-dhs-leaked-memo

Before you head out for the weekend, and ahead of the big cyber news week ahead, check out today's Metacurity for the most crucial infosec developments you should know, including

--Russian group Turla impersonated Kaspersky to spy on embassies,
--China accuses US of exploiting Exchange flaw to steal data and launch attacks,
--China grills Nvidia on AI chip security risks,
--Google was indexing ChatGPT conversations,
--UK age verification law is blocking non-porn content,
--Illumina to pay $9.8m to resolve US cybersecurity complaint
--Threat actors pounce on zero days before their disclosure,
--Microsoft Authenticator died today,
--Pwn2Own Ireland 2025's top prize is $1m,
--Attackers use URL wrapping to hide phishing links,
--Coinbase hack cost it $307m,
--Executives are physically threatened in 40% of ransomware attacks,
--Prophet Security raises $40m in Series A,
--Jen Easterly is a class act,
--Atlassian CEO is not a class act
https://www.metacurity.com/russian-group-turla-impersonated-kaspersky-to-spy-on-embassies/