Nothing To Do With Actual Border Policy

But a whole lot of grandstanding and posturing for the Great Unwashed.
I get the feeling Sockpuppet was told to go out there and try to placate the rubes by ordering the guard to the border. I also think it didn't work. Any mention of "immigration reform" or "guest worker program" isn't going to please the close-the-border types. He tried to cut the baby in half and all parties concerned are even more pissed at this trainweck.

"Sending troops to the border" sounds fine until you realize they're going to be solely in a support capacity:

"National Guard troops tapped for duty on the border with Mexico will not chase down illegal immigrants but instead will play behind-the-scenes roles in support of border guards, officials said Monday.Among the tasks they are likely to perform over the coming year: training federal Border Patrol guards, building barriers near the border, improving roadways, providing support for aerial and ground surveillance, analyzing and sharing intelligence, and providing communications systems and transportation, the officials said." source.

"Officials suggested their mission would be to play a supporting role by providing intelligence, training, transportation, construction and other functions, while leaving the actual guarding of the 2,000-mile line separating the United States and Mexico to the Border Patrol. The National Guard would be a stopgap force until the federal government could hire civilian contractors to take over administrative and support functions from the Border Patrol, freeing more agents to actually hunt for immigrants slipping into the country." source

After being absent without leave for years concerning this issue, the criminals have finally decided to use it to their advantage without actually doing anthing. They'll get yet more nifty photo ops with lots of uniforms, and no doubt the media will be all over it with great fanfare and lots of help from the DHS. Great campaign videos, you betcha.And here come those plum, no bid contracts for civilian contractors.
Like Halliburton?