WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump’s latest bid Deploying military forces on US soil Local opposition is causing a New conflict with Governor Blue It’s being deployed in court, as Trump assumes a country where armed soldiers patrol the streets of the United States.
I already have Trump I pushed the traditional boundaries It envisions the role of the muscular US military in using domestic security forces to target illegal immigration and crime in American cities.
His attempts to deploy members of the California State Guard to Oregon and Texas State Guards to Illinois The vast use of the presidential forces. Next Steps Litigation filed by a Democratic-led state It could address key issues regarding constitutional law, federalism and separation of power – Potential conflicts between courts and the active use of Trump’s National Guard.
Trump asked for it at last week’s military brass gathering. Use US cities as training grounds For the military, they warned about “invasions from within.” But for his critics, Trump’s use of the National Guard corresponds to a horrifying use of force against Americans.
“What happens if the president is defeated in court?” said Alex Reinert, a constitutional legal expert at Cardozo Law School in New York City. “Does he use it as an excuse to act in a more authoritarian way?”
The expansion role of the National Guard that you’ve never seen before
Rifle-wielding troops on American streets are one of the most severe symptoms Trump’s attempt to expand the president’s powerthe military is already deployed in Los Angeles and Washington DC.
Controlling the state’s national guards usually falls into governor unless there are units. Federalization – Just like in California Regarding the governor’s objection. Otherwise, it is up to the governor to decide to deploy guard members to support natural disasters or send them to other states. In DC, Trump commands security guards He himself.
Local governments have failed to protect their communities, offering several Democratic-led cities as examples, Trump said. He is “The war has been destroyed” called Portland And then there’s a “war zone” that “flames” and “lives in hell.”
But almost 150 years old Posse Comitatus Act It restricts the role of the military in enforcing domestic law, reflecting America’s longstanding belief that law enforcement should remain in the hands of civilians.
White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt said Trump wanted to make American cities safer.
“You guys are framing, ‘The president wants to take over the military and the American cities,'” Lewitt told reporters Monday.
US officials say the decision to send federal troops from Texas and California to other states is at the highest level of the Trump administration and bypasses the formal Pentagon policy process, which is usually part of the military deployment.
This dynamic is not unheard of, but authorities are usually used in situations like natural disasters where the military must leave quickly before formal orders or approval. All officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the internal situation.
One outcome is that Governors like Gavin Newsom of California and JB Pretzker of Illinoisboth Democrats became the first to announce the deployment of the military. Pentagon spokespersons have struggled to confirm or deny actions and the number of troops, facing pressure to avoid basic details of military operations and to avoid postponing questions to the White House.
This situation differs greatly from President John F. Kennedy’s move to federate the Alabama State Guard in 1963, combining the University of Alabama in a conflict with Gov. George Wallace. Because Trump is trying to use the military to protect federal property and personnel, according to William Banks, a law professor at Syracuse University and a constitutional law and national security expert.
Security guards cannot enforce local laws, block traffic, or carry out “anything that police do.” “So it’s more iconic than useful.”
Legal challenges set conflicts against Trump’s development
Leader of IllinoisOregon and California sued, but top White House figures blasted Trump’s appointment Judge decision to block development In Portland.
Top Trump adviser Stephen Miller suggested that it was the courts who ignored constitutional limitations.
“A district court judge will not at all restrict the president and commander-in-chief from sending members of the US military to defend the lives and property of the federal forces.” “Domestic terrorism.”
Legal experts say judges are unlikely to be influenced by fuss. Instead, they will consider whether Trump’s orders violate the constitution and violate federal laws governing the use of security guards.
Trump’s Enemy It depends on the court system To slow his agenda, as Republican-controlled Congress has barely checked his expansion of power.
As lawsuits pile up, Trump officials have shown a dismissal of the judges and decisions they oppose, but so far they have avoided the direct kind of conflict that legal experts say could do real harm.
“It’s very worrying that they may violate an order from federal court,” Banks said. “That’s our backstop. That’s what we have in the US to keep our democracy on the railroad.”
Presidential power expert Elizabeth Goitein said Trump was a “clear violation of the law” and a prominent attempt to avoid a judge’s weekend ruling, a “clear violation of the law.”
Goitein, senior director of the Freedom and National Security Program at the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University, said Americans should be concerned that Trump and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegses view developments in U.S. cities as practices of overseas conflict.
“What the military is trained is to fight and destroy the enemy of the United States. The US president wants soldiers to practice this combat training on the streets of American cities,” she wrote. Social Media.
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Associated Press authors Chris Megarian, Seung Min Kim and Nathan Elgren contributed to the report.
