The Voice News: The Trump administration’s decision to deploy up to 2,000 federalized National Guard troops to Los Angeles to manage civilian protests has raised alarms among former military leaders, who warn it threatens to turn the U.S. armed forces into a political instrument.
Senior veterans have criticized the move as a serious breach of the long-standing principle that the military remain apolitical except in the most extraordinary circumstances. The last time a president federalized the National Guard against the wishes of a state governor was in 1965, when President Lyndon Johnson sent troops to protect civil rights demonstrators in Alabama.
“This is the militarization of politics,” said Major General Paul Eaton, who once trained Iraqi forces during the Iraq War. “It casts the military in a grim role — like the reluctant man on horseback facing American citizens.”
Eaton warned that this deployment could be a prelude to invoking the Insurrection Act of 1807, a law that authorizes the president to mobilize the full military to suppress insurrections or rebellions. “We’re heading toward misuse of that act as a legal cover for overreach,” he said.
The largely peaceful protests in Los Angeles, sparked by opposition to Trump’s immigration deportation policies, entered their fourth day as National Guard troops began arriving Sunday. Although authorized only to protect federal personnel and properties, the troops are not permitted to conduct law enforcement duties.
A retired senior army officer, speaking on condition of anonymity to preserve military neutrality, said the deployment ignored the governor’s wishes and appeared to be a political maneuver by Trump. “This was a forced military action because the president could do it,” the officer said.
Trump’s official memo federalizing the National Guard is strikingly broad, effectively allowing the Defense Secretary, Pete Hegseth, to deploy troops anywhere nationwide to protect federal operations amid protests. Unprecedentedly, it authorizes pre-emptive deployments based on predicted protest activity.
On Sunday, Trump hinted at expanding this strategy nationwide, declaring, “We’re gonna have troops everywhere.”
Janessa Goldbeck, a Marine Corps veteran and CEO of Vet Voice Foundation — which advocates for veterans’ engagement in democracy — described the executive order as a massive escalation, enabling unrestricted troop mobilization across the country.
Geoffrey DeWeese, a former army judge advocate and legal director at the National Institute of Military Justice, expressed unease about the blurred lines between armed National Guard members and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. Both wearing military gear and carrying automatic weapons could confuse civilians, he said, and send a chilling message when uniformed personnel appear heavily militarized during immigration raids.
This unfolding militarization was anticipated. Last summer, experts at the Brennan Center wargamed Trump’s potential actions in a second term, accurately predicting today’s events.
Trump himself made no secret of his intent during the 2024 campaign, frequently warning he would use the military against the so-called “enemy within” if re-elected.
Veterans’ concerns have been further fueled by Trump’s earlier politicization of the military, including the controversial firing of the Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman and other top officers without clear justification.
Retired Lieutenant General Jeffrey Buchanan, former commander of U.S. Army North, said these dismissals risk dividing the military into factions loyal to different political leaders, damaging public trust. “The military’s loyalty must be to the Constitution, not any individual president,” he emphasized.
The upcoming military parade in Washington, D.C. on June 14, celebrating the U.S. Army’s 250th anniversary and coinciding with Trump’s 79th birthday, has also drawn criticism.
“Tanks rolling into the capital for a $40 million spectacle glorifying one man is deeply un-American,” said Goldbeck. She noted that while the military honors its anniversaries, grand parades are traditionally avoided to prevent the appearance of authoritarianism.
“This reflects Trump’s view of the military as a personal tool, rather than a professional force sworn to uphold the Constitution,” she said.