Politics

Trump’s National Guard deployment finds an ally in Tennessee

Published

10 months ago

September 12, 2025

In naming Memphis the next destination for National Guard deployment, President Donald Trump has opened a new front in his crusade against cities — one that relies on cooperation from Republican governors.

So far, Trump has targeted crime in cities within states led by Democrats, deploying the Guard to Los Angeles and Washington, and threatening action in Illinois, Maryland and Oregon. But launching troops into one of deep-red Tennessee’s largest cities marks a shift for the White House, alleviating legal hurdles and strengthening the president’s efforts as he increasingly relies on the military for policing.

And Memphis may just be the start — GOP governors have shown a willingness to lean on the Guard to aid in crime fighting and deportation efforts. Before it was declared the next target on Friday, Trump had suggested he would dispatch the Guard to New Orleans — which GOP Gov. Jeff Landry celebrated. Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders this week detailed the Guard to assist in immigration enforcement in Little Rock and Fayetteville. In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott has routinely sent the Guard to police the border, and in June authorized 5,000 troops in anticipation of protests against deportation raids.

Tennessee Republicans view the entrance of the Guard in their state as an opportunity to sharpen their attacks on Democrats over crime, an issue that remains one of the GOP’s biggest strengths.

“Why these blue state governors would act like dumbasses and not welcome the federal help to reduce the crime for their own citizens is beyond me,” said Tennessee Sen. Brent Taylor, a Memphis-area Republican who has long requested federal intervention in his city. “When it comes to the crime issue, blue state governors are as useless as a milk bucket under a bull.”

But by teaming with Republican governors, Trump will “be able to demonstrate to the rest of the country, in particular to the blue state governors, that your opposition kept your crime rate high in your cities,” he said.

Trump’s decision to go to a red state also offers more flexibility in how the National Guard is mobilized — and allows him to avoid some of the legal resistance he has faced with Democratic leaders. The White House and governor’s office have yet to decide how resources will be deployed in Memphis, but with Lee’s buy-in, the National Guard could remain under the state’s authority and avoid the constraints of the Posse Comitatus Act, which which bars the military from enforcing domestic laws without explicit permission from Congress, said Christopher Mirasola, an assistant law professor at the University of Houston Law Center.

A White House official touted the president’s federal takeover in Washington, and pointed to Memphis’ crime statistics as a key driver in the president’s decision — as well as the fact that he has the backing of some local and state Republicans who welcomed Trump’s announcement. Violent crime in Memphis has risen in the last decade, but like other large American cities, rates have decreased since pandemic-era spikes. The city’s police department said in a release this week that murder is at a six-year low, aggravated assault at a five-year low and sexual assault at a 20-year low.

“The president’s action in Memphis and what he has talked about in cities — dangerous cities around the country — is not about pushing back against a Dem narrative. It’s not about scoring political points,” said the official, granted anonymity to speak candidly. “It is something he has talked about for many, many years, dating back to when he first ran for president in 2015.”

The official called Memphis “a very dangerous city” adding, “so, of course, having the buy-in of local officials is great.”

On Friday, after Trump derided Memphis as “deeply troubled,” Republican Gov. Bill Lee said he was working with the White House on a plan to combat crime that leverages “the full extent of both federal and state resources.”

“This is politically smart of Trump, insofar as it lets him accomplish two goals at once. First, he gets to take away an opposition talking point — that crime is higher in many cities in red states than in DC or Chicago. He can say ‘Look, I take crime seriously everywhere,’” said Rosa Brooks, a Georgetown University law professor who served as a counselor to the undersecretary of defense for policy under President Barack Obama. “Second, he continues to normalize the once unthinkable use of uniformed military personnel in American cities.”

But even with the state’s Republicans on board, the deployment sets up a clash with local Democratic leaders. Memphis Mayor Paul Young said at a press conference on Friday that he did not request the National Guard, and he doesn’t believe it’s an effective way of driving down crime: “However that decision has been made — my commitment is to make sure strategically that we make sure this happens in a way that truly benefits and strengthens our city.”

Other Tennessee Democrats point to Trump’s military takeover of Memphis as an extension of his policies to stoke racial divisions and to make an example of the perceived ineptitude of cities that have a high number of Black elected officials.

“If he was interested in responding to his base, he would be in Utah,” state Rep. Justin Pearson said. “Immediately after Charlie Kirk is killed there’s a National Guard deployment to one of the Blackest cities in the United States of America?”

Pearson argued sending National Guard troops exposes the incompetence of Republicans who control all levels of power across the state.

“If indeed the problem is so bad here in Memphis, it shows the failure of our Republican-led statehouse and our governor…to do their jobs well,” added Pearson, who was briefly expelled from chamber after protesting in support of gun safety two years ago. “If all the money that is going to be spent on this political charade would instead be given to poor people in our cities and in our communities, we wouldn’t have crime problems the way that we do.”

Others say Republicans, who enjoy a governing trifecta and a supermajority in both chambers of the statehouse, have overseen the steady roll back of state and federal resources that could help local officials tamp down on crime. This includes federal gun violence prevention funding that was cut under the Trump administration and the relocation of the FBI’s main field office last October across the state to Nashville during the Biden administration, despite Memphis ranking high on the FBI’s list of violent crimes per capita.

“I’m fearful [of] where this is going, and that we will not get the promise of zero crime,” Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris said at a press conference Friday. “Send FBI agents and law enforcement agents who can get guns off of the street. Don’t send armored vehicles.”

Democratic leaders in New York and Illinois are bracing for Trump to follow through on his threats to deploy the Guard in New York City and Chicago. In Chicago, as ICE’s presence has grown in recent weeks, National Guard troops have yet to be deployed. Gov. JB Pritzker believes Trump may yet change his mind ahead of the midterms.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has insisted a federal deployment of the Guard is unnecessary given the progress made addressing crime. Hochul deployed the National Guard late last year to New York City’s subways, a move intended to.make New Yorkers feel safer when riding the nation’s largest mass transit system.

New York State Homeland Security and Emergency Services Commissioner Jackie Bray said city officials have been meeting multiple times a week to discuss preparations if Trump directs his attention to New York City next.

“My message as it has been from day one is: ‘We’ve got this,’” Bray said. “The NYPD is the best law enforcement entity in the country. It would be an insult to them if the federal government thinks they can do a better job.”

Nick Reisman and Shia Kapos contributed to this report.

Politics

How Josh Shapiro became a World Cup super fan

Published

10 minutes ago

June 27, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

PHILADELPHIA — Josh Shapiro’s black SUV deposited him at a bougie cafe earlier this week, and the governor beelined to a backroom full of handpicked World Cup social media influencers and began working the room.

For roughly an hour, the Pennsylvania governor and potential 2028 Democratic presidential candidate worked to build relationships with people who could cast this host city — and, one day, his potential candidacy? — in a positive light. He regaled them with personal anecdotes, waxing eloquent about how the former NBA star turned TV analyst Charles Barkley had said nice things about him, how he once got Jerry Seinfeld to laugh at one of his jokes and how Philadelphia would play host to UFC 330. (“I am not putting a claw on the governor’s residence lawn,” Shapiro joked. “We’re going to do it in a proper venue.”)

But what the governor, wearing a navy U.S. Men’s National Team polo and FIFA-themed Adidas Stan Smiths, really wanted to talk about was the World Cup.

“I don’t know that we’re gonna make a run all the way to the end here, but there’s something really exciting — I mean people who don’t know anything about soccer are tuning in and watching and getting pumped up,” Shapiro told them. “I think sports is an amazing thing, and it has the effect of changing the psychology of the entire city.”

Shapiro, more a Sixers than a Philadelphia Union guy, is among those recent converts to the world’s game. As of this week, he’s been to three matches at Lincoln Financial Field — more than any other potential 2028 presidential candidate. Save New York City’s Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who has blitzed soccer media to chat about arcane ball knowledge such as being “personally affected when Championship Manager became Football Manager,” perhaps no other Democratic politician has so fully embraced the tournament. (Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas may also have a claim.)

“I’m especially proud to see people from all across the world coming here to Philadelphia and being greeted not just by a governor who’s happy they’re here, but by Philadelphians and Pennsylvanians who are thrilled to see them here,” Shapiro told me in an interview. I think we are better than [President] Donald Trump’s cruel rhetoric. We are better than his cruel policies, and I think we’re seeing that on display here during the World Cup in Philly.”

Shapiro’s approach to the tournament could pay political dividends for him. “The U.S. team is kicking ass. And Trump is ignoring it,” said Matt Bennett of the center-left think tank Third Way. “Democrats should own it all — go to games, watch them in bars with fans, brag about our team, hang out with the Scots. Show the country that we’re normal, patriotic and fun-loving.”

After breakfast with the influencers, Shapiro made his way to the official FIFA Fan Festival at Fairmount Park’s Lemon Hill, and fist-bumped lines of volunteers. He darted over to a fan zone area where he assembled a collectible Bank of America Fan Band, selecting charms that would spell out “250” for the Semiquincentennial.

In nearly every interaction, he conducted an informal poll on who revelers thought was the tournament’s greatest player, namechecking Argentinian and French maestros.

“[Lionel] Messi or [Kylian] Mbappé?” he’d ask. It is, one of his staffers told me, a tic he has, a way to put people on the spot and also gather intel.

Next, he went over to a makeshift arcade featuring a video game called Soccer Jawn — a homage to the old Atari Pong — posing for selfies along the way. He took the controls of the game and rotated through several new acquaintances and opponents: a staffer, then a kid visiting from Virginia. His father, who said he was a fan of Shapiro, watched.

“Who do you think is better: Mbappé or Messi?” Shapiro quizzed again.

Mbappé, the kid replied.

Shapiro fist-bumped the kid and moved on to grip more hands and poll more people, stopping for selfies along the way.

“I think the world needs some more togetherness, needs some more cheer, and this is a great opportunity,” Shapiro told reporters in a gaggle.

A reporter asked whether he disagreed with former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who rejected FIFA and Chicago serving as a World Cup host.

“I’m not going to comment on Rahm, because I didn’t hear him say it, but I’ll just say we’re looking at $770 million in economic impact here, and remember it’s across the state with Reading, with Pittsburgh and Scranton, of course, here Philly, which is the center of the soccer universe,” Shapiro said. “I think you’re seeing with the record-setting crowds we’ve had here at fan fest, it’s not just people here, it’s people in our hotels, our restaurants, our bars.”

Later, Shapiro headed in the direction of the Linc, or Philadelphia Stadium in FIFA parlance, where he would take in the first half of Iraq vs. France, seeing Mbappé himself score a brace, including a back post screamer in the 13th minute. First, though, he sat for another interview on the World Cup, this time with NPR Sports in America.

Back at the FIFA Fan Festival, Shapiro spoke with me about his endorsed slate of congressional candidates, his recent meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Philadelphia’s ties to the men’s team.

The Commonwealth is home to three U.S. players: Matt Freese from Wayne, Christian Pulisic from Hershey and Auston Trusty from Media, I pointed out to Shapiro.

“Freese first off has just been lights out at goalie,” Shapiro said. “Hopefully, Pulisic is going to be healthy for Thursday night. [He was.] I got a soft place in my heart for Trusty.”

Shapiro explained that Trusty’s mom was partners in a law firm with the mother of his own son’s girlfriend. The group went out to dinner last week, though Shapiro didn’t join. The governor did make a video for Trusty and sent it to him. “Just letting them know how proud we are of him,” Shapiro said.

Trusty, Shapiro said, is “someone who can surprise us going forward.”

A press wrangler told me I had one more question.

“Messi or Mbappé?” I asked Shapiro.

“Mbappé today may be a slightly better player,” Shapiro said. “Messi has that thing that Michael Jordan had, which is just playing it at a different level, where it’s not just that he’s the best player on the pitch; he’s just in a different universe. He just does things that others simply can’t do. So, I mean, the three goals he had in that first game, actually, the first one, was extraordinary. I think Messi overall. Mbappé is pretty damn good right now.”

Politics

Congressional Black Caucus blasts Slotkin over her calls for new leadership in the House

Published

50 minutes ago

June 27, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

The CBC emphatically declared its support Friday for House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries…
Read More

Politics

The weekend of Andy Burnham’s life

Published

55 minutes ago

June 27, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Andy Burnham is set to become Labour leader on Friday, July 17 and British Prime Minister on Monday, July 20. In between, on Sunday, July 19, England could win the World Cup (no, really).

For Burnham, a lifelong soccer fan, it would be quite the weekend.

Some commentators — including IPSOS pollster Keiran Pedley — have even suggested that, in such circumstances, Burnham should call a snap election to ride a wave of national euphoria and secure his own political mandate.

Given Labour’s commanding majority in Parliament, that is unlikely to happen. But the suggestion hints at soccer’s extraordinary power to shape the national mood — something politicians, and especially new prime ministers, ignore at their peril.

Coming up next week on POLITICO’s Westminster Insider podcast, host Patrick Baker asks how soccer shapes our politics, and examines what politicians should — and should not — do in order to use soccer to their advantage.

Sometimes it is about timing. Former Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson, buoyed by memories of watching England win in 1966, called an election four years later during the Mexico World Cup of 1970. He was banking on England’s dominance boosting the public mood and, in turn, his election chances. But England crashed out of the tournament to West Germany days before the poll and Wilson lost the election.

Other times it is about authenticity. While there’s never been any doubt that Keir Starmer is a genuine Arsenal fan or that Andy Burnham is a devoted Everton supporter, the enthusiasm of some politicians for their club teams has appeared less convincing. Aston Villa fan David Cameron famously said he supported West Ham in a speech during the 2015 election campaign, which he won despite the flub.

For politicians seeking to speak for the whole U.K., remembering Scotland (on the brink of crashing out of the World Cup), Wales and Northern Ireland (neither made it to the tournament) matters too.

And in a sport capable of both uniting and dividing, ministers and prime ministers alike have often discovered that criticizing players, managers or fans can carry political risks of its own.

Politics and soccer: How to play the game. Listen to Westminster Insider next Friday, July 3.