Sharing the Facts About Domestic Military Deployment and State Authority

The National Guard is typically run at the state level and operated under the command of the governors. Those units are often used to respond to natural disasters or other emergencies in their states. Normally, states activate the National Guard to assist local authorities, who are best trained, prepared, and positioned to maintain public safety in their communities. The National Guard’s role is not to police their fellow Americans.

The National Guard can be moved into federal service, but the military’s ability to engage in law enforcement is limited.

On June 7, President Trump signed a memo that moved thousands of National Guard units from state control into federal service. In the memo, the president cites a specific federal code that allows the president to federalize National Guard units in defined circumstances, including when “there is a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States,” and when “the President is unable with the regular forces to execute the laws of the United States.”

Trump signed the memo after demonstrators took to the streets of Los Angeles, protesting the administration’s immigration policies and the massing of federal law enforcement. The president’s action came without authorization from Gov. Gavin Newsom and against the wishes of local law enforcement, according to a lawsuit filed by California.

But the memo goes beyond California, saying thousands of National Guard members from around the country could be deployed in other states to protect immigration enforcement and other federal officials, and to protect federal property “at locations where protests against these functions are occurring or are likely to occur.”

Further, it allows Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to deploy regular armed forces for these same purposes. Days after releasing the memo, the Trump administration sent 700 active-duty Marines to Los Angeles.

In a letter to Hegseth, Newsom said the federal government did not coordinate with California. If it had, the Trump administration would have seen that state and local law enforcement did not need the assistance, Newsom wrote.

On June 9, California sued the Trump administration for unlawfully federalizing the California National Guard without authorization from the governor or a request from local law enforcement, and without the necessary factual circumstances permitting the president to use that particular law.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta said the administration’s actions were “unnecessary and counterproductive,” and an abuse of presidential power. He also urged those who are outraged by the situation and feel moved to speak out to do so “peacefully, safely, and lawfully,” and he reinforced that local law enforcement is prepared to “ensure public safety.”

Here are some key takeaways about Trump’s memo federalizing National Guard units:

• When governors need federal assistance, they ask. It should not be forced on them.
  • Local law enforcement is best trained to address public safety matters in their communities. State officials know their communities and understand local dynamics best. This only complicates their work.
• Federal deployment is a dangerous departure from the long-standing state and federal government collaboration to uphold the law and protect the public.
  • Federal deployment of the National Guard only heightens tensions and pulls resources away from where they are needed most.
  • This is not how the U.S. military typically works within American borders. States typically activate the National Guard to assist local authorities, not to police their fellow Americans.
  • The Trump administration’s failure to brief and coordinate with local law enforcement concerning the scope of the federal mission and the applicable use of force makes everyone less safe. A separate federal mobilization of the National Guard may not align with the needs of local officials who are keeping the peace.
• Putting the military on our streets in this situation is a disservice to our communities and our service members.
  • State and local officials will continue to focus on serving their residents.
  • Many local law enforcement officers and other front-line workers—including nurses and firefighters—are members of the National Guard. If they are deployed under the direction of the federal government, they are taken from the communities they serve.
• Americans oppose deploying the National Guard without a governor’s consent.
  • Fewer than a quarter of Americans think Trump should be able to deploy National Guard units without the consent of a state’s governor, according to a States United survey.
  • Americans also overwhelmingly oppose the use of the military to stop protests, according to the poll.