Military leaders have directed National Guard units in all 50 states to form “quick reaction forces” trained in response to civil disturbances and riots. The deployment of the units is expected to happen within hours of receiving the order, which is a drastic change in the manner military units are deployed in America’s domestic affairs. The move is part of the Trump administration’s plan to handle illegal immigration and crime in America’s cities.
Federal decrees require specialized training for riot control missions
The memos were signed by Major General Ronald Burkett, operations director of the National Guard, and addressed all National Guard units within all states and territories, training groups of military personnel in specialized courses. The training covers the use of ‘batons, body shields, stun guns, and pepper spray’ in crowd control situations. Each state is required to develop forces of more than 23,000 personnel, and, indeed, many states are required to develop forces of 500 personnel.
The memos require that this specialized type of Quick Reaction Force can deploy one-fourth of its personnel within eight hours and all assigned personnel within 24 hours. This is obviously much faster than the standard deployment typically required by the National Guard, as this takes much longer, as preparation is required for personnel mobilization, equipment allocation, and mission briefing of personnel deployment into the operations sector.
Rapid Response Teams require training in the following components:
- Crowd management and domestic protocols for handling civil disturbances
- The appropriate utilization of non-lethal weaponry, for instance, tasers and pepper sprays
- Baton and body shield deployment in riot control situations
- Interservice Nonlethal Individual Weapons Instructor Course
Connecticut Guard spells out its special role in national response framework
The Connecticut National Guard emphasized they will follow any national directive, but they clarified they were not required to establish a National Guard Quick Response Force, distinguishing themselves from other states on this issue.
Major Michael Wilcoxson said, “Connecticut is not required to establish a National Guard Quick Response Force.” He distinguished response forces and Quick Response Forces as being significant for “civil disturbances and controlling riots.”
The Connecticut Guard recognized the fact that their specialized capabilities have been maintained for almost two decades, and this includes units trained and competent in conducting operations for civil disturbances since 1985. The units were previously engaged in providing security for critical infrastructure locations following the September 11 attacks of 2001, as well as helping the police in response to Superstorm Sandy in 2012. Additionally, they were engaged in response to threats directed at the Connecticut Capitol Building following the events of January 6, 2021.
Legal issues arise from increased military presence in urban areas
The Trump government is increasingly being met with legal challenges against the deployment of National Guard forces in large cities, as federal courts have stayed the deployment of military forces in Chicago through late November and in Portland this week.
“Our military should be used to defend us from foreign adversaries, not to crush dissent or silence peaceful protest,” Senator Richard Blumenthal said on the deployment of military forces against citizens.
“Typically, the National Guard reacts to natural disasters, but this type of Quick Reaction Force is a novel response mechanism to disturbances of this type,” said Kenneth Gray, University of New Haven criminal justice professor and former FBI special agent.The Quick Reaction Forces will allow for the deployment of 125 personnel within eight hours and 500 personnel within 24 hours.
The National Guard’s increasingly prominent role in answering calls for civil unrest is merely part of the larger paradigm shift in homeland security policy under the Trump administration. Although litigation remains pending in federal court, the military is now pressing forward with deadlines mandating the creation of functioning Quick Reaction Forces within all state governments by no later than January 1, 2026.
