MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A group of veterans is making their voices heard in Tennessee, as the National Guard joins hundreds of state and federal law enforcement patrolling the city of Memphis.
The veterans say they aren’t happy about the troops being in the city and have set up an encampment downtown. They say they aren’t leaving.
On Sunday, there were about 20 people at a tent covered with military flags from the Marines to the Navy.
These veterans say there are a number of things they don’t like about the National Guard being here — they say it’s an overreach of power from President Donald Trump, they think it’s unfair to the guardsmen and a waste of their time, and they say this is nothing but an intimidation tactic from Trump.
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They say they didn’t serve this country to see something like this happen.
“I don’t think anywhere needs the National Guard to police its citizens. The National Guard should never be used as a police force,” said Matt Gordon, a veteran of the Marine Corps who served in both Iraq and Afghanistan, and flew in from Washington, D.C., to start the movement in Memphis.
“We’re planning on being a constant presence in the streets letting the people of Memphis know that the veterans of this country support them, and not this blatant tyrannical overreach of military authority,” Gordon said.
Ben Reese, a Navy veteran who lives in Memphis and is one of the leaders of the encampment, says he agrees that Memphis has a crime problem, but doesn’t see the National Guard coming to the city as the solution.
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“Yes I can pull up with some guys and some guns, and they’ll probably stop for a little bit, but what happens when they leave?” Reese said. “It doesn’t solve the root issue. It’s just overspending, it’s excessive, it also erodes trust with the local law enforcement.”
The group emphasized that as long as the National Guard is in Memphis, there will be someone at the encampment, saying they’re even willing to sleep outside.
National Guardsmen were first spotted in Memphis on Friday. They are one of several units in Trump’s task force that have already arrested more than 600 people and seized more than 150 illegal guns, according to Attorney General Pam Bondi.
