William Banks was interviewed for the Foreign Policy article "Pentagon Chief Weighs Broader Approach to Border Security." Banks believes there is no "clear, positive legal authority" for active-duty US troops to be at the US-Mexico border.

The surveillance and detection role could pose a particular problem, he added. The laws allowing US military forces to conduct surveillance in support of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers dates back to the "war on drugs" in the 1980s and were specifically designed for counter-drug activities, Banks explained. 02/26/19