Pentagon Readying Thousands of Guard ‘Reaction Forces’

“The Pentagon has ordered thousands of specialized National Guard personnel to complete civil unrest mission training over the next several months, an indication that the Trump administration’s effort to send uniformed military forces into urban centers — once reserved for extraordinary emergencies — could become the norm,” the Washington Post reports.

“The Defense Department’s newly established ‘quick reaction force’ within the National Guard must be trained, equipped with riot-control gear and ready for deployment by Jan. 1.”

“An existing separate but similar structure, the National Guard Reaction Force, is expected to complete civil unrest training and be fully operational by April 1. The total size of the force will be 23,500 troops across all 50 states and three territories, excluding the District of Columbia.”