With plans in the works and troops on the way, military assumes a mostly familiar role on the border

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Dozens of Marines unfurled coils of concertina wire — one on the ground and one slightly above — making it more difficult to climb a border wall separating Tijuana from San Diego. They worked with speed and efficiency amid a weekend rush of cars nearby at the busiest border crossing between the U.S. and Mexico.

Fortifying barriers has long been a military task on border missions that date back to the administration of George W. Bush. But President Donald Trump has hinted strongly at the unprecedented use of the armed forces to repel what he calls a “disastrous invasion.”

Until now, the military has limited itself to a supporting role at the border — surveilling for illegal crossings by ground and air, repairing vehicles, building barriers — adhering to the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878 to keep the armed forces away from civilian law enforcement.

The Associated Press toured the border in San Diego with Marines and saw a military operating similar to past missions. But some scholars and advisers close to Trump argue there are legal grounds to summon the military to combat narcotics and mass migration.

Trump's declaration of a national emergency at the southern border indicates he may redirect money, as he did during his first term, to get billions of dollars for border wall construction.

His inaugural day orders raise the possibility of invoking wartime powers, including the Insurrection Act of 1807, allowing him to deploy active-duty troops to suppress a rebellion. He gave Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem 90 days to deliver recommendations.

The Insurrection Act “is just all-purpose. The regular military can do anything on U.S. soil,” said Adam Isacson, who follows the role of military at the Washington Office on Latin America, a research and advocacy organization.

Trump has already broken from predecessors. While the military has housed migrants at times, its deportation flights to Guatemala, Ecuador and Colombia mark a departure from previous administrations. Trump said he would use a detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to hold tens of thousands of the “worst criminal aliens,” though it hasn't happened yet.

There is a sense among Border Patrol agents and others that there is more to come. Isacson said he believes the administration may see a model in Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's “Operation Lone Star,” which thrust the state's National Guard into a central role in border enforcement.

The Defense Department deployed 1,600 active-duty troops to the border during Trump's first week in office. U.S. officials said Friday that they are preparing to deploy at least 1,000 more in Trump's immigration crackdown, about half to the border and half to Guantanamo Bay.

So far, the military has maintained low visibility in San Diego. The Marines laid concertina wire Friday at the bottom of an 18-foot-high (5.5-meter-high) border wall that already had wire on top. Migrants who manage to get over or through the wire face a second, 30-foot-high (9.1-meter-high) wall.

A tour in Osprey military transport aircraft, which have been used to bring concertina to Brown Field Municipal Airport in San Diego, showed Border Patrol vehicles staged at various lookouts. They stretched about 70 miles (112 kilometers) from the Pacific Ocean through boulder-strewn ranches east of San Diego and a treacherous mountain range where few migrants cross.

Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks said Thursday that arrests for illegal crossings averaged 654 a day over the previous week, down from a daily average of 1,527 in December.

San Diego has been the busiest corridor for illegal crossings over much of the last year. Arrests averaged 222 a day in a seven-day period through Jan. 25, down from 237 the previous week.

U.S. Marine pilots land an Osprey at the Naval Outlying Landing Field Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Imperial Beach, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

U.S. Marines install barbed wire along the border fence Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

The U.S. Border with Mexico is seen in an aerial view Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, near San Diego. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Gunnery Sgt. Derek Levi, right, looks down at the U.S. Mexico border aboard a Marines helicopter Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, near San Diego. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Military personnel board a U.S. Marine Osprey at the Naval Outlying Landing Field Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Imperial Beach, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

U.S. Marine pilots and U.S. Border Patrol agents interact at the Naval Outlying Landing Field Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Imperial Beach, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

A U.S. Marine Osprey is flown over the border Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, near San Diego. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

The U.S. Border with Mexico is seen in an aerial view Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, near San Diego. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

A U.S. Marine Osprey is flown over the border Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, near San Diego. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

The U.S. Border with Mexico is seen in an aerial view Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, near San Diego. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

U.S. Marines install barbed wire along the border fence Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

U.S. Marines install barbed wire along the border fence Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

U.S. Marines install barbed wire along the border fence Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

U.S. Marines install barbed wire along the border fence Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

U.S. Marines install barbed wire along the border fence Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

MILAN (AP) — Norwegian cyclist Fredrik Dversnes claimed the biggest victory of his career as he won the 15th stage of the Giro d’Italia on Sunday, while Jonas Vingegaard remained in the overall lead heading into the final week.

Dversnes won from a four-man breakaway that escaped early on the flat 157-kilometer (98-mile) route that started in Voghera and ended with four laps of the finishing circuit in Milan.

The Uno-X Mobility rider edged out his fellow escapees by almost a bicycle length, with Mirco Maestri finishing second and Martin Marcellusi third.

It is the first Giro for Dversnes and his team.

“Super good help from the other guys in the breakaway … They were really, really strong today,” Dversnes said. "I knew I had good opportunities because I’m pretty good at going in breakaways, so this was my big shot.

“I’ve been joking this year that I will try to trick the peloton in one of these sprint stages, so I really wanted to do that and prove that, so super glad to make it. It's big. It’s a really big and incredible feeling.”

Vingegaard, who had seized control of the race on Saturday, finished safely in the peloton to maintain his overall advantage of 2:26 over Afonso Eulálio, with Felix Gall 24 seconds further back.

The race jury decided to neutralize Sunday's stage for the last lap after several riders — including Vingegaard — complained about the road surface and the placing of the barriers. The overall times were taken at the last passage under the finish arch, before the start of the last lap.

“Maybe today was not the most safe road, so to speak, but we tried to speak with the organization and they really listened to us,” Vingegaard said. “So I want to thank the organization as well for listening to what we had to say today.”

Monday sees the Giro’s third and final rest day before Tuesday’s brutal 16th stage. The 113-kilometer route from Bellinzona includes five classified climbs, including the top-category slog to the finish in Carì.

The Giro ends on May 31 in Rome.

The women’s Giro from May 30-June 7 will be defended by Italian rider Elisa Longo Borghini.

AP cycling: https://apnews.com/hub/cycling

Denmark's Jonas Vingegaard wears the pink jersey of the race overall leader as he stands on the podium after completing the 15th stage of the Giro d'Italia cycling race, from Voghera to Milan, Italy, Sunday, May 24, 2026. (Massimo Paolone/LaPresse via AP)

Norway's Fredrik Dversnes Lavik, left, celebrates winning the 15th stage of the Giro d'Italia cycling race, from Voghera to Milan, Italy, Sunday, May 24, 2026. (Marco Alpozzi/LaPresse via AP)

Norway's Fredrik Dversnes Lavik celebrates winning the 15th stage of the Giro d'Italia cycling race, from Voghera to Milan, Italy, Sunday, May 24, 2026. (Fabio Ferrari/LaPresse via AP)

Pink jersey Denmark's Jonas Vingegaard, center, pedals during Stage 15 of the Giro d'Italia cycling race, from Voghera to Milan, Italy, Sunday, May 24, 2026. (Fabio Ferrari/LaPresse via AP)

The pack of riders pedals during the 15th stage of the Giro d'Italia cycling race, from Voghera to Milan, Italy, Sunday, May 24, 2026. (Gian Mattia D'Alberto/LaPresse via AP)

Denmark's Jonas Vingegaard wearing the pink jersey of the race overall leader, waves to fans ahead of the 15th stage of the Giro d'Italia cycling race, from Voghera to Milan, Italy, Sunday, May 24, 2026. (Massimo Paolone/LaPresse via AP)