National Guard deployment in LA shows disregard for victims of deadly St. Louis tornado
Demonstrators protest Sunday outside a downtown jail in Los Angeles following two days of clashes with police during a series of immigration raids. ()
I've gotten used to sending my sister the same short text every once in a while.
'You guys okay?'
She's lived in Los Angeles for more than a decade now, and has experienced enough wildfires and earthquakes that this text has become routine. Fortunately she's stayed safe through all of them, although she did have to evacuate her home during the January fires.
I sent another one of these texts Friday night when I saw that protestors in L.A. were clashing with ICE agents who were trying to forcefully deport their friends and neighbors. She is okay, far enough away from the epicenter to stay safe, but the conflict between the People and our federal government has only heightened since then.
On Saturday, in a show of brutal force, President Donald Trump signed a memorandum calling at least 2,000 members of the National Guard into service for 60 days to 'augment and support the protection of Federal functions and property,' essentially turning the armed military might of the United States against its own citizens in order to carry out these gutless ICE raids.
On Sunday morning, I strapped my son to his little chest carrier and went on a three-mile walk through parts of St. Louis. On a number of occasions, felled trees and torn-up sidewalks blocked my path, requiring me to step onto the street, which is notoriously not very safe for pedestrians. We passed by too many houses and apartment buildings without roofs and even more piles of shattered bricks.
Back on May 16, it was my sister's turn to send that familiar text. The tornado blamed for five deaths that devastated our city and region was notable for its destruction, but will remain notable for its lasting impacts. Almost one month later, recovery efforts have barely begun, with city government ill-equipped to effectively manage them and The People's Response needing a desperate infusion of resources and capacity.
As both Mayor Cara Spencer and former Mayor Tishaura Jones have rightfully pointed out, this is when the federal government is supposed to step in. Disaster recovery is the rightful domain of FEMA, but their response has been 'slow-walked,' according to Republican Sen. Josh Hawley, who notably voted against funding FEMA in September of 2024, but is now practically begging the feds to come in and do their job.
With FEMA funding low and the response time slow, the other tool at the federal government's disposal is the National Guard, which can be called in after a state declares a State of Emergency, just like Gov. Mike Kehoe did on May 19. But the federal government only deployed 40 National Guard members to help with debris clean-up, and only for one week. They're already gone.
This juxtaposition of the situations in Los Angles and St. Louis is infuriating, and shows that our federal government under the Trump administration is more willing to deploy resources against its own citizens, rather than to help them. Some 2,000 National Guard troops helping to rebuild in St. Louis would be a godsend. But 2,000 armed National Guard troops protecting ICE agents in Los Angeles is a gestapo.
Our federal government has not only turned against its own people, but willfully neglected their most basic duties in the process.
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The Hill
34 minutes ago
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