Retired Major General Calls Trump's National Guard Plans 'Unneeded and Dangerous'

Concerns Over Executive Order

• ⚠️ Retired Army Major General Randy Manner describes President Trump's executive order regarding the National Guard as unneeded and dangerous, setting a new precedent.
• 🎯 The order mandates that National Guard units be resourced, trained, and organized to assist law enforcement in quelling civil disturbances, including the creation of a standing national Guard quick reaction force for rapid nationwide deployment.

National Guard's Primary Mission

• 🛡️ Manner emphasizes that the National Guard's primary missions are to defend citizens overseas and save lives during national disasters, with assisting local law enforcement being a distant third objective.
• 🚨 The focus on 'public order' and creating a force for nationwide deployment to deal with potential demonstrations is seen as not in keeping with the mission of the National Guard.

Control and Focus Shift

• ⚖️ A key difference highlighted is that governors control National Guard units unless deployed by the president, and currently, mayors are not requesting additional assistance, suggesting the president is imposing the armed military on American cities.
• 💰 Manner suggests that if the president is concerned about law enforcement, he should restore funding to community engagement and officer training rather than re-tasking the National Guard.

Impact on Guard Readiness and Personnel

• 📉 The extensive use of National Guard in recent deployments is decreasing their readiness for their principal job, which is not to be used against our own people.
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 The concept of a quick reaction force with 1-2 hour deployment times is physically impossible for part-time citizen soldiers, unlike active-duty military units, and indicates a lack of thorough mission planning.
• 🚫 The current staffing and operational model of the National Guard cannot support such a rapid deployment requirement without significant, unfeasible increases in size and rotation.