The Problem With the Plan to Send National Guard to Cities
Trump has stated that sending in the National Guard will clean up a number of cities. This has been cited as successful in Washington, DC.
But has it been? The presence of armed soldiers certainly quells street crime. The tendency to commit crimes will definitely be affected by gun toting military cruising the streets. But what happens after the Guard leaves? Will the criminals simply reappear?
According to federal law, "US Code § 12406 allows the president to call National Guard troops from any state into service if the US is "invaded or is in danger of invasion by a foreign nation," or "there is a rebellion or danger of a rebellion" against the US government."
However, there is a glitch here. If called by the President, the National Guard does not have the power to make arrests. States Richard Painter, a law professor at the University of Minnesota, "National Guard troops under the command of the President of the United States have a status similar to the U.S. military and are prohibited by federal law from engaging in law enforcement activities in the U.S." Are National Guard troops legally allowed to perform law enforcement duties? The answer is complicated - CBS Minnesota
In fact, the Posse Comitatus Act forbids the National Guard from making arrests, under federal deployment. So it is apparently the presence of the National Guard which serves to inhibit crime.
However, ICE agents are not so inhibited and may conduct sweeps and arrest illegal immigrants. And are apparently doing just that.
In the light of the reality surrounding the National Guard presence, one might wonder at all the hoopla being generated around this issue, particularly between Trump and Illinois Governor Pritzker. Pritzker has filed a federal lawsuit in an effort to block the deployment of the National Guard in Chicago. Pritzker sues Trump to block National Guard action in Illinois
According to this article 3 states sending 700 National Guard troops to DC, "Trump said he was sending in the large law enforcement and military presence to address crime and homelessness in the nation’s capital. Data from local agencies and the Department of Justice show that crime has significantly dropped in Washington, D.C. However, since last weekend, hundreds of federal agents, including personnel from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Drug Enforcement Administration have arrived in the city, patrolling D.C. streets around the clock."
It is the effect on crime committed therefore by aliens which is targeted in these cases. And after the National Guard is pulled out, it can be assumed that those arrested by ICE agents won't be committing further crimes in any of these cities. And street crime and homelessness by legal citizens of the US will continue.
In fact, homelessness is on the increase in the US. The recent yearly homeless count recorded an 18% increase in homelessness, up to 771,480 in 2025 from 653,104 from the year before. State of Homelessness: 2025 Edition - National Alliance to End Homelessness
None of this is addressed by the presence of the National Guard.
So what is the solution? Getting Tren de Agua members off the streets is certainly a beneficial move. But the street crime and homelessness affecting our big cities is not going to disappear unless the cause of these are addressed. And given the realities of the US economy now, there is no easy fix to be had. And that includes the temporary quelling of street crime by the presence of military personnel.