October 11, 2025.
The 7th US Court of Appeals court blocked President Trumps action of deploying the National Guard to Chicago. The story can be accessed at the link below.
https://apple.news/AmVNfew6jRT2MpEsXa0KlAw
Trumps desire to deploy National Guard troops is not unique. There were a dozen incidents prior to Trumps first deploying the National Guard in Los Angels this year. Below is a summary of previous National Guard deployments.
Historical Instances of U.S. Presidents Federalizing the National Guard
The U.S. President has the authority to federalize the National Guard under Title 10 of the U.S. Code, often via the Insurrection Act of 1807 or related statutes, to intervene in domestic events such as rebellions, civil unrest, or enforcement of federal law when state authorities are unable or unwilling to act. Below is a chronological summary of key historical instances where this occurred, focusing on confirmed federalizations of state militia or the National Guard (noting that the modern National Guard was formalized in 1903, but earlier uses involved precursor state militias). This list draws from official and historical records; it excludes state-led activations without presidential federalization and deployments of regular federal troops without Guard involvement.
• 1794: Whiskey Rebellion (Pennsylvania)
President George Washington federalized state militia units to suppress an armed uprising by western farmers protesting a federal excise tax on whiskey, leading over 13,000 troops into the region. The rebels dispersed without major combat, affirming federal authority.
• 1799: Fries’ Rebellion (Pennsylvania)
President John Adams federalized state militia to quell a tax resistance movement led by John Fries, who organized armed opposition to a federal property tax for war preparations. Fries and followers surrendered peacefully after militia mobilization.
• 1861: Civil War Outbreak (Multiple Southern States)
President Abraham Lincoln federalized approximately 75,000 state militia troops from Northern states to suppress the Confederate rebellion following the secession of 11 Southern states and the attack on Fort Sumter. This initiated the Civil War, with federalized units serving throughout the conflict and Reconstruction to restore federal authority.
• 1957: Little Rock School Desegregation (Arkansas)
President Dwight D. Eisenhower federalized the Arkansas National Guard (initially deployed by Gov. Orval Faubus to block integration) and sent the 101st Airborne Division to enforce the Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education ruling, escorting nine Black students into Central High School amid mob violence. The students integrated successfully.
• 1962: University of Mississippi Desegregation (Mississippi)
President John F. Kennedy federalized the Mississippi National Guard to quell riots and enforce court-ordered integration of James Meredith, the first Black student at Ole Miss, after Gov. Ross Barnett resisted. Federal troops restored order after clashes that killed two people.
• 1963: University of Alabama Desegregation (Alabama)
President John F. Kennedy federalized the Alabama National Guard to override Gov. George Wallace’s “stand in the schoolhouse door” protest and allow two Black students to enroll at the University of Alabama. Wallace stepped aside, enabling integration.
• 1963: Alabama Public Schools Desegregation (Alabama)
President John F. Kennedy federalized the Alabama National Guard a second time that year to enforce desegregation orders for public schools in Tuscaloosa and other areas, countering state resistance to federal civil rights mandates. Integration proceeded without major violence.
• 1965: Selma-to-Montgomery Marches (Alabama)
President Lyndon B. Johnson federalized the Alabama National Guard to protect civil rights marchers, including Martin Luther King Jr., after “Bloody Sunday” violence by state troopers on the Edmund Pettus Bridge. The Guard ensured the safe completion of the voting rights protest march.
• 1967: Detroit Riots (Michigan)
President Lyndon B. Johnson federalized 8,000 Michigan National Guard troops to assist federal forces in quelling four days of rioting triggered by a police raid, amid racial tensions, resulting in 43 deaths and widespread destruction. Order was restored by July 28.
• 1968: Martin Luther King Jr. Assassination Riots (Multiple Cities, Including Washington, D.C., Baltimore, and Chicago)
President Lyndon B. Johnson federalized National Guard units in over 100 cities to suppress riots following King’s assassination, deploying 13,600 troops in D.C. alone. In Wilmington, Delaware, occupation lasted nine months, the longest in U.S. history.
• 1970: Postal Workers’ Strike (New York)
President Richard Nixon federalized the New York National Guard to deliver mail during a nationwide strike by 200,000 postal workers demanding better wages and conditions. The intervention broke the strike after 11 days.
• 1992: Los Angeles Riots (California)
President George H.W. Bush federalized nearly 6,000 California National Guard troops under the Insurrection Act to combat riots sparked by the acquittal of officers in the Rodney King beating case, deploying alongside 4,000 federal troops. The unrest, which caused 63 deaths and $1 billion in damage, ended after six days.
• 2025: Los Angeles Immigration Protests (California)
President Donald Trump federalized about 2,000 National Guard troops from various states, bypassing Gov. Gavin Newsom, to protect federal immigration officers during protests against ICE raids in the sanctuary city. Troops used non-lethal force; the deployment lasted four days amid lawsuits from state officials.
• 2025: Washington, D.C. Crime Intervention (District of Columbia)
President Donald Trump invoked the D.C. Home Rule Act to federalize National Guard units for a broad anti-crime operation in the capital, including evictions of homeless encampments, following an assault on a White House staffer. The deployment faced opposition from D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and continued into October.
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