After sending troops to Los Angeles and to the nation’s capital, Washington, D.C., many people in all walks of life and on both sides of the proverbial political aisle assumed the next American city to have troops deployed to its streets and sidewalks would be Chicago. And with good reason, as President Donald Trump himself not-so-subtly hinted that would be the case on several occasions. But it turns out that the next major metropolis American Soldiers will patrol is not the Windy City but the Home of the Blues: Memphis, Tennessee.
Now, the federal operation is underway in Memphis while Portland, Oregon, readies for the arrival of National Guard troops. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced on Tuesday that "our operation in Memphis is now underway, and we're just getting started."
According to Bondi, 219 members of the National Guard were "special deputized" (granted federal law enforcement authority), and a "Joint Operation Center" has been set up. Uniformed troops and vehicles were seen at a Memphis Safe Task Force staging area on Wednesday, October 1st.
Why Are National Guard Troops Headed to Memphis?
President Trump signed the order to send National Guard troops into Tennessee’s state capital on Monday, September 15th, with that state’s governor, Bill Lee, by his side.
Governor Lee, unlike Governor Gavin Newsom of California, approved of the deployment of Soldiers within his state. As a matter of fact, Governor Lee described the coming operation as a “replica of our extraordinarily successful efforts” in Washington.
Also in attendance were both of the senators representing the Volunteer State in Congress: Marsha Blackburn (R) and Bill Hagerty (R).
President Trump’s reason for the deployment is a claimed crime rate higher than the national average, though the city’s police force reports the lowest levels of crime in 25 years.
Additionally, the local city council published a resolution condemning the use of troops and asking for federal assistance in repairing local infrastructure and supporting public education instead.
That said, the city still has a relatively high homicide rate compared to other U.S. cities, and Governor Lee, Senators Blackburn and Hagerty, and other politicians representing this red state welcome federal intervention.
What is the Memphis Safe Task Force?
The National Guard troops deployed to the city will be but one component of a larger initiative dubbed the Memphis Safe Task Force, which will also include agents of the FBI, DEA, ICE, the US Marshall’s Service, and other employees of more than a dozen federal agencies.
This will not, however, be the start of these agencies’ activities in Memphis. The Marshalls, for example, have made over 100 arrests in the city this summer as part of an ongoing crackdown.
So, while the news of National Guard deployments may be the reason many Americans became aware of federal law enforcement operations in the city, they have actually been underway for some time.
How Many Soldiers Will Deploy to Memphis?
A lot of questions regarding the details of the deployment still remain, as specifics about the operation are still slowly being made known to the public.
At the time of publication, we do know that Bondi and Hegseth arrived in Memphis on Wednesday of this week to meet with Tennessee officials ahead of National Guard troops setting foot on the city streets.
White House officials addressed Memphis Safe Task Force officials inside Shelby County Operations Center in the afternoon.
Bondi shared,
"We're here to back you up and to be your partner. Be safe. Thank you for what you do. There's no higher calling than being a police officer, especially in a violent world in which we live."
That same day, Attorney General Pam Bondi shared the following post on X,
"In just 48 hours, our Memphis Safe Task Force has made 53 arrests and seized 20 illegal firearms.
Yesterday, a missing juvenile was located, and three firearms were recovered at the home of a murder suspect. At @POTUS direction, we are making America Safe again!"
White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller also shared a message with law enforcement, stating:
"Our mission here is very simple: Zero tolerance for crime in the City of Memphis."
Guard troops were seen at the Memphis State Task Force staging area off of Mullins Station Road this Wednesday afternoon.
At this time, the full number of troops deployed to Memphis has not been specified, but Gov. Bill Lee has stated that he does not expect more than 150 National Guard members to be deployed.
Specific units have not yet been publicly disclosed, but the deployment is part of a "Memphis Safe Task Force" that is supporting local law enforcement. At this time, the city has said that there won't be tanks and that troops won't be armed unless requested by local authorities.
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