NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Memphis mayor said Saturday that President Donald Trump’s television announcement was the first strict confirmation he received. The National Guard will be sent to the city Anti-crime mission.
Speaking about CNN, Mayor Paul Young said he learned that the idea was under consideration when Republican Gov. Bill Lee’s office informed him earlier in the week. The Democratic mayor said the conversation continued throughout the week and talked about the possibility of a greater law enforcement presence through the FBI, Drug Enforcement Bureau, Alcohol Bureau, cigarettes, firearms and explosives.
Then, on Friday morning, Trump announced it on Fox News. He said Memphis is “deeply bothered” and “I’m going to fix it like Washington.” Federal law enforcement agencies have skyrocketed.
Asked CNN if there was a “hard confirmation” before Trump’s announcement, Young said: “No, that was a confirmation.”
A few days ago, Memphis police reported a decline in all major crime categories for the first eight months of 2025 compared to the same period in the past. The overall crime hit its lowest level in 25 years and killed its highest level in six years, police said.
But Memphis has dealt with the issue of stubborn gun violence for years. In 2023, the city saw a record 390 murders.
The city is still struggling with Fallout since January 2023 The death of Tire Nichols After he was beaten by a Memphis police officer. In December, the Justice Department was under then-President Joe Biden. Host of civil rights violations The police station is part of an investigation that spurred Nichols’ death. The findings included excessive force use, illegal traffic stops, and the use of disproportionate targets of black people in majority black cities.
In May, under the Trump administration, the division These findings have been retracted.
Details remain flux
The governor says how security guards are considered in their efforts to tackle crime is still being resolved. Lee and Trump said Friday, and plans to do so again early next week, his spokesman Elizabeth Lane Johnson said. The governor said the development will add momentum to ongoing FBI projects, along with state and local law enforcement agencies, where “hundreds of the most violent criminals have been arrested.”
The mayor said on Saturday it remains unclear how many troops will come, when and when their exact roles will occur. He hopes to learn more next week.
Young was asked what he recommends focusing on the National Guard in Memphis, and Young suggested tasks such as support for big events, including traffic aid. He also said they can help law enforcement in camera surveillance when they see criminal activity, call back-ups or lend a hand in “beautifying” the neighborhood.
The mayor is not “happy” in the development
Young challenged Trump’s claim that the mayor was “happy” about the introduction of the National Guard. He says he doesn’t want to unfold and doesn’t think it’s going to reduce crime. However, he acknowledges that cities remain high on too many “bad lists” and since the deployment was decided, he hopes that “we want to promote how they engage in our cities.”
Young said he understands the horrors within the Memphis community, noting that the National Guard was deployed there in 1968 after Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated.
“I don’t want to call the same image here,” Young said.
The role of the National Guard
Security guards also assisted in implementing school integration in Clinton in 1956.
Its troops are deployed to aid in many major disasters, including floods, winter storms, Hurricane Helen and wildfires. They played a role that included supporting test operations during the Covid-19 pandemic.
They were also on the ground in Tennessee and elsewhere at tense moments such as protests. In both Washington and At the state capitol After the murder of George Floyd. The governor deployed them for Trump-led initiatives, including going to the southern border. He is responsible for administrative work for the state’s federal immigration and customs enforcement. And then we return to Washington under the president’s recent crime-centric mission.
Louisiana Project
The draft plan to revitalize the state’s 1,000-person National Guard forces is increasing local law enforcement in pursuit of deployment in New Orleans and other urban areas. Under a plan obtained by the Washington Post, if GOP Gov. Jeff Landry requests federal assistance, the forces will be deployed.
Rep. Troy Carter, a Democrat who represents the New Orleans area, said the city has experienced the lowest crime rate in decades and there is no emergency justifying the militarization of the streets.
Alexandria Mayor Jack Roy said nola.com More resources said “can make a real difference,” noting that National Guard installation Camp Beauregard is located near his city.
Disclosure of the draft plan comes after Trump told Fox News Friday that it would help him “fix” Louisiana’s crime problem.
The Associated Press sent an email to Landry’s office for comment. State Attorney General Liz Maril said last week that she fully supports Trump’s idea of deploying the military.
Washington scene
In Washington The deployment of national guards of around 2,000 units from seven states and DC Guard units continue, but Trump’s emergency order expired when Congress did not extend it.
The fierce presence of armed forces remains in many public spaces where tourists and visitors travel, such as Union Station and several metrorail platforms.
Because Washington is a federal city, the security guards are under the command of the president, making it a slightly different situation than Memphis.
The governor controls the state security guards. It is unclear whether Memphis will be able to see out-of-state troops.
Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser acknowledges that the city’s future includes federal law officials who do more basic local jobs. Bowser has established an operational centre to promote better coordination and communication between metropolitan police and those agencies.
One agency she omitted from discussing cooperation is immigration and naturalization services, rounding up hundreds.
Agents in the Homeland Security Investigation on Friday, the FBI and Metropolitan Police worked side by side security at a high school football game.
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Associated Press authors Gary Fields of Washington and Matthew Brown of Billings, Montana contributed.
