THE CHINOOKS ARE STILL FLYING. TEXAS' BORDER MISSION MIGHT NOT BE.
Federal troops are touting a 70% drop in Valley crossings. Four days later, the governor who built Operation Lone Star lost his job. The Rio Grande Valley now sits between two border missions moving in opposite directions.
McALLEN, Texas - 36 days. That is how long federal troops have been surging into the Rio Grande Valley under Operation Unified Resolve. On Saturday afternoon, a U.S. Army Chinook helicopter crossed the sky over McAllen, its twin rotors loud enough to stop conversations on the ground.
That sound has become routine here. What surrounds it has not.
In the span of one week, the U.S. military declared early success for its Valley operation, and Texas voters elected a governor who has called the state's own border mission "political theatre." Two missions. Two chains of command. And for the first time since 2021, they may be headed in different directions.
WHAT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT CONFIRMS
The federal surge began October 2. Joint Task Force-Southern Border announced Operation Unified Resolve that day in a U.S. Northern Command press release. The command said hundreds of service members and equipment were repositioning to the Valley to strengthen border security, increase the military's ability to respond to threats and support federal law enforcement along the Rio Grande.
Unified Resolve is not a standalone mission. It falls under Operation Ardent Vanguard, the broader military border mission Joint Task Force-Southern Border has led since March 2025.
The troops were moved, not added. Northern Command spokesperson Becky Farmer told Border Report the surge was not on top of the existing border mission. The soldiers were pulled from other areas of the southern border and concentrated in the Valley, she said.
The Army has about 8,000 soldiers along the entire southern border, according to The Associated Press. Border Report confirmed the surged troops are patrolling from McAllen and throughout Starr County, with Chinooks flying over South Texas day and night.
Early reports put the surge at roughly 500 troops. That figure came from unnamed law enforcement sources cited by NewsNation. Northern Command has publicly said only "hundreds."
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WHAT SET IT OFF
On September 26, Coast Guard Forces Rio Grande personnel came under gunfire from the Mexican side of the river near Garceño, in Starr County. The Coast Guard said its personnel returned fire. No injuries were reported.
Who fired remains under investigation. Asked whether the shooting was cartel-related, Gov. Greg Abbott told The Texan he could not confirm it, but "that is what I heard." The Coast Guard has said it is not part of Operation Unified Resolve, though it works alongside the military and Border Patrol.
Northern Command also points to a seasonal pattern. Farmer told Border Report the Coast Guard encounter was an example of illegal activity that "tends to have an uptick this time of year."
MEXICO ON THE OTHER BANK
The buildup is happening on both sides of the river. According to Northern Command, Mexico is participating with 500 Army and National Guard personnel, two Air Force UH-60 helicopters, drones and anti-drone equipment.
KRGV reported in October that more than 1,000 U.S. and Mexican military personnel combined were stationed along the border. Channel 5 News spotted Mexican National Guard troops under the Roma-Miguel Alemán International Bridge.
The presence is changing daily life in small ways. Police in Escobares and Starr County have asked dove hunters near city limits to notify them before hunting, to avoid false security alarms while troops are in the area.
THE 70% CLAIM
On November 3, Joint Task Force-Southern Border released its 30-day results. The task force said illegal crossings and suspicious activity in the Valley sector dropped by approximately 70%.
The task force reported these first-month numbers:
1,186 mounted and riverine patrols.
48 mirrored patrols with the Mexican military.
17 drone detections.
"The first 30 days of Operation Unified Resolve demonstrated the incredible progress we can make when U.S. and Mexican forces work hand in hand with a common purpose to solve a common challenge," said Army Lt. Gen. Curtis Taylor, the task force commander. The release described Taylor as the outgoing commander. No successor had been publicly named as of this writing.
Here is what the release does not say. It does not state the baseline the 70% is measured against. It does not separate the surge's effect from trends that were already underway. The Defense Watch, a defense news outlet, noted that the Department of War did not release enough information to independently calculate the drop or determine how much resulted from the operation.
That matters because crossings were already low before the surge. The AP reported that some experts questioned whether the buildup was necessary, since illegal crossings had already fallen under asylum restrictions. The AP also reported that critics viewed the troop presence as political theater ahead of the November midterms.
Until the underlying numbers are public, the 70% figure is the military's own assessment of the military's own operation.
THE MILITARY ZONE ALONG THE RIVER
The surge sits on top of an existing legal structure. In June 2025, the Air Force established the South Texas National Defense Area, a 250-mile stretch of the Rio Grande in Cameron and Hidalgo counties administered as part of Joint Base San Antonio. In February 2026, Stars and Stripes reported that zone would expand another 40 miles to reach Roma.
Inside a National Defense Area, troops can temporarily detain people and conduct searches. Anyone crossing can face trespassing charges on military property in addition to immigration charges.
The Valley is also a testing ground for new technology. Officials said the military used a high-energy laser in the Valley from August to September to take down at least 11 cartel-linked drones.
MEANWHILE, IN AUSTIN
While the federal mission was announcing results, the state mission was losing its architect.
According to The Texas Tribune, Democrat Gina Hinojosa defeated Greg Abbott on November 3. The Tribune described her as the first Mexican American elected governor of Texas. Democrat Nathan Johnson won the attorney general's race, the first Democrat elected to that office since 1994, the Tribune reported.
Operation Lone Star is Abbott's signature program. Since 2021, it has sent Texas National Guard soldiers and DPS troopers to the border, built barriers and arrested migrants. The Tribune reports it has cost Texas about $11 billion so far.
Hinojosa has said she would review it. "We need a review of Operation Lone Star," she told KRGV last month. "Operation Lone Star needs to only exist to make us safer."
She has not promised to end it. "We need secure borders, absolutely," she has said. "I will spend the money it takes to keep our community safe." The Tribune reported she did not commit to fully dismantling the program.
The money question comes fast. The Legislature approved nearly $3.4 billion for border security in the current state budget, and continuing that funding requires lawmakers to renew it. The Tribune reports the Texas House will be Democratic-controlled when the Legislature reconvenes in January.
There is also a quieter lever. Abbott has renewed his border disaster proclamation 69 times since 2021, according to the Tribune. That proclamation underpins much of the state mission. Whether a Governor Hinojosa keeps renewing it is an open question.
TWO MISSIONS, TWO BOSSES
This is the part that often gets blurred. The Chinooks over McAllen do not answer to Austin.
Operation Unified Resolve runs through U.S. Northern Command and the Department of War. It operates under federal authority in support of Customs and Border Protection. A change in the governor's office does not change that mission.
Operation Lone Star is different. It is a state program, funded by the Texas Legislature and directed by the governor. That is the mission now headed for review.
So the Valley could soon see something it has not seen in five years: the federal footprint holding steady or growing while the state footprint shrinks.
THE QUESTIONS NOBODY HAS ANSWERED
How long will the surge last? Northern Command has called it ongoing. It has not given an end date.
What is the 70% measured against? Until the task force publishes its baseline, Valley residents are being asked to take the number on faith.
Does the timing hold up? The surge launched one month before the midterms. The election is over. If the operation is about seasonal cartel activity, it should continue through winter. Watch whether it does.
Who fired on the Coast Guard? Six weeks later, the investigation into the September 26 shooting has not produced a public answer.
And what happens to the Texas Guard soldiers on the river if Austin pulls back while Washington stays?
For now, the answer is overhead. On a Saturday in November, the Chinooks were still flying.
SOURCES
U.S. Northern Command, "Joint Task Force-Southern Border Announces Operation Unified Resolve, Reinforces Rio Grande Valley," Oct. 2, 2026
Border Report, "Feds confirm surge in troops, Chinooks for border mission," Oct. 7, 2026
The Associated Press, "After surging troops to the border, US Army showcases a quieter Rio Grande," Oct. 12, 2026
The Texan, "Hundreds of Troops Deployed to Southern Border After Shooting Incident Aimed at U.S. Coast Guard," Oct. 2026
NewsNation, "500 troops deployed to Texas' Rio Grande Valley after Coast Guard shooting," Oct. 2, 2026
KRGV, "Military presence surges along Roma border following Garceño shooting investigation," Oct. 2026
KRGV, "Increased military presence prompts dove hunting safety reminders in Starr County," Oct. 2026
Joint Task Force-Southern Border, 30-day Operation Unified Resolve results, Nov. 3, 2026 (as published by MilitarySpot)
The Defense Watch, "Operation Unified Resolve Reports 70% Drop in Rio Grande Valley Border Crossings," Nov. 2026
Stars and Stripes, "Military zones on border expanding," Feb. 10, 2026
The Texas Tribune via KRGV, "Texas spent billions on border security. What happens to Greg Abbott's mission when Dems take over?" Nov. 6, 2026
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