US Defense Secretary Mark Esper opposed President Donald Trump’s idea of invoking the Insurrection Act so as to deploy active-duty US troops in US…
US Defense Secretary Mark Esper opposed President Donald Trump’s idea of invoking the Insurrection Act so as to deploy active-duty US troops in US cities to quell protests against the murder of George Floyd by a police officer.
Esper ordered troops away from Washington but then reversed himself
Esper ordered 200 active-duty troops from the 82nd Airborne immediate response force, which had been brought to the national capital to deal with unrest if needed, to return to their base after two days of relatively peaceful demonstrations. However, after just a couple of hours he reversed his decision after a meeting at the White House and after internal Pentagon discussions.
No doubt the Trump administration wanted to make sure that Esper did not by direct action contradict the president’s position.
