President Donald Trump sent the National Guard and a new special security force to Memphis to address street violence in the United States.
President of the United States, Donald Trump, signed a memorandum on Monday ordering the deployment of the National Guard to Memphis, along with the creation of a “Special Security Force” aimed at combating street crime and violence in the city.
According to the document released by the White House, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth will request that Tennessee Governor Bill Lee make National Guard units available to support public safety and law enforcement operations.
Deployment will last “in the amount and for the time the Governor deems necessary,” though it also notes that Attorney General Pam Bondi and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem may call for additional reinforcements.
Plan also establishes the “Memphis Special Security Force,” whose main objective is to eradicate violent crime through strategies such as saturating troubled neighborhoods with police personnel, carrying out complex investigations, and pursuing more aggressive judicial action.
Force will also be tasked with enforcing federal immigration law and coordinating actions related to public safety, including unauthorized protests or riots.
Memorandum states that the unit will include representatives from multiple federal agencies, such as the Departments of Treasury, Defense, Justice, and Homeland Security, as well as the FBI and DEA. It may also request cooperation from local and state authorities in Tennessee, Arkansas, and Mississippi, giving it a wide operational scope.
At the Oval Office signing, Trump declared that the deployment “will be a replica of our extraordinarily successful efforts in Washington,” and hinted that Chicago would be the next city to undergo a similar operation.
This move follows earlier interventions in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., where a federal judge ruled the National Guard’s deployment illegal, citing violations of the Posse Comitatus Act, which limits the use of the military for domestic law enforcement.
Trump had already warned earlier in September that cities such as Baltimore and New Orleans could also see similar interventions. With this decision, the White House is doubling down on its domestic security strategy, though experts warn about potential political and legal tensions over the role of the military in American civil life.
