WASHINGTON — The Department of Homeland Security has requested more than 20,000 National Guard members to help with the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, according to two U.S. officials with knowledge of the plans.

The request to the Defense Department came after President Donald Trump asked the Department of Homeland Security last week to increase its ranks by pulling in 20,000 officers from state or federal agencies.

Lawyers at the Pentagon were reviewing the request with “interior immigration enforcement,” according to a Defense Department official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe internal deliberations. It was unclear what role state National Guard members would play and whether they would be involved in rounding up people for deportation, the official said.

It was not immediately clear if the states would also have to approve the plan. National Guard troops have generally played a supporting role to domestic authorities in enforcing immigration issues at the border.

— The New York Times