Weaponizing the National Guard is fascism
"Bringing in the National Guard would only further destabilize an already tense situation in Milwaukee."
The Recombobulation Area is a 19-time Milwaukee Press Club award-winning opinion column and online publication founded by longtime Milwaukee journalist Dan Shafer. The Recombobulation Area is now part of Civic Media.
In a live event in Davenport Iowa in December 2023 with Fox News personality Sean Hannity, then-candidate Donald Trump joked about being a dictator — but only for the first day.
We’re almost nine months into Trump’s second term and we’ve been seeing dictator-like actions from him far more than for the first day. Among those actions is the startling increase in using the military against American citizens, a strong tenet of a fascist regime.
In June, Trump deployed the National Guard to Los Angeles after protests against ICE. On Sept. 2, a federal judge ruled that the administration broke the law and violated the Posse Comitatus Act by doing so. The Posse Comitatus Act is a 150-year-old law prohibiting the use of the military enforcement of domestic law. The spirit of the law is to make sure law enforcement is enforced by civilians rather than military and I think we all can understand why. A military is designed to protect citizens, not to be weaponized by a president who is determined to centralize as much power as possible.
While a judge said the National Guard being deployed in Los Angeles was a violation, that ruling is only restricted to California. But, it seems like the Trump administration doesn’t particularly care about such rulings, and is now saying they plan to go to Chicago. At a recent visit in La Crosse, Vice President JD Vance said Trump wants to be asked, but also mentioned he can go into Chicago without Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker’s approval — further proving the point that the Trump administration doesn’t care about rules or law and order. Leaders in LA didn’t ask either, but we saw them there while there were peaceful protestors.
Now, after LA, Trump has brought the National Guard to occupy Washington, D.C., and has set his sights on other cities like Baltimore and Chicago. With the recent threats around Chicago, naturally, there is a real concern over what’s happening spreading to Milwaukee, given our proximity to Chicago. We also see a pattern of Trump targeting cities with large Black and Brown populations with Democratic mayors who also happen to be Black. We can see why folks are concerned about Milwaukee.
What the Trump administration is doing is not about public safety and keeping our streets safe. These days, some of the most crime happening in DC is coming from the White House. One of Trump’s first acts in this second term is pardoning more than 1,500 insurrectionists from Jan. 6. They are the violent criminals who tried to murder elected officials, and they were prioritized for pardons by Donald Trump. At the same time, this administration has targeted activists, people who disagree with him, and innocent residents.
Watch: Angela Lang discusses this issue in the Sept. 2 edition of “The Maggie Daun Show”
This is not about public safety. If we were serious about public safety, we wouldn’t be cutting services and access to healthcare, housing, resources for lower income residents, education and so much more. When you invest in communities, you can make them safer. Mayors in Baltimore, Chicago, and Birmingham have made investments into their communities and have seen a reduction in crime. They are investing in preventative programs as well as mental health, jobs, affordable housing, and behavioral health services. When people’s needs are met, we see a reduction in crime.
In talking with some folks who have made mistakes out of desperation, they referenced the Tupac line “I ain’t never did a crime I ain’t have to do.” While I’m certainly not condoning crime, we can understand why people do what they have to do to survive. If we want to get to the root causes of crime, it is not investing in more policing. Police only respond to crime, not prevent it (and sometimes perpetuate it).
In recent years, for example, the city of Milwaukee disproportionately spends money on policing versus preventative programs. We see policing take up almost 50% of our entire city budget while the health department, which houses the Office of Community Wellness and Safety, is funded in a single-digit percentage. The Office of Community Wellness and Safety was formerly called the Office of Violence Prevention, and while the name may have changed, their work is still very much a part of violence prevention. Why is that office not a priority when they literally work on prevention? While cuts to vital programs are happening, we see schools dealing with lead contamination, or even being closed in recent years.
During this year’s state budget process, Gov. Evers vetoed the deadline to close a nearly 130-year-old prison in Green Bay. He cited that the plans needed more work and that deadline wasn’t realistic. It’s a complicated process, but yet, it’s easier to close a school than a prison. Cops are back in Milwaukee schools and the school-to-prison/deportation pipeline is stronger than ever. It has become the norm to prioritize policing and defense budgets than our children’s futures. We see the disproportionate funding into criminalization and the military, being used as one and the same these days, instead of investing into programs that prevent crime.
Bringing in the National Guard would only further destabilize an already tense situation in Milwaukee. The Milwaukee Police Association union is threatening to ask President Trump for the National Guard to be deployed in Milwaukee because they are in a bitter spat with the mayor over their union contract, which is currently in arbitration. Our community, and our safety, should not be used as a political pawn, especially in this fascist environment.
Last August, the Milwaukee Police Association hosted an event with then-candidate JD Vance. We see a dangerous alliance with the fascist regime of the Trump administration and the police union, a union who is supposed to protect and serve the residents. We see a coordinated attempt to oppress Black and Brown residents and lean into white supremacist policies.
We don’t need more weapons, soldiers, or swollen police budgets, we need real change. True safety never comes from more violence or surveillance but investing in people, education, health, housing, and opportunity. Our communities have been clear: We want care, not combat.
The future of Milwaukee and our democracy depends on our leaders choosing justice over force and investment over intimidation. Anything less fails our people who call this city home and who care about democracy.
Angela Lang was born and raised in the heart of Milwaukee. She has an extensive background in community organizing. In the past, Angela served as both an organizer and State Council Director for the Service Employees International Union, working on such campaigns as the Fight for 15. Before founding BLOC, Angela was the Political Director with For Our Future Wisconsin. She is a graduate of Emerge Wisconsin. She currently is the Vice President of the ACLU of Wisconsin Board and sits on the board for Diverse and Resilient, a non profit organization that supports the LGBTQ community in Wisconsin, as well as on the board for the Milwaukee Parks Foundation.
Angela is motivated by making substantial and transformative change in her community while developing young, local leaders of color. Her journey in organizing hasn't always been easy, but through it all she has remained a fierce advocate for securing more seats at the table for those who represent the New American Majority.
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Follow Dan Shafer on Twitter at @DanRShafer and at BlueSky at @danshafer.bsky.social.