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Draft Pentagon Plan Envisions 1,000 Guard Troops for New Orleans and Baton Rouge

The Pentagon authenticated draft documents outline a Title 32 law-enforcement mission that would require a formal request from Gov. Jeff Landry.

Overview

  • The proposal details deploying Louisiana National Guard personnel to support police in urban centers, with tasks including drug interdiction plus logistical and communications support.
  • The draft lists no start date and sketches a planning horizon through September 2026, and any activation depends on a formal request from Landry, whose office declined to comment on leaked documents.
  • The Defense Department cautioned that predecisional drafts should not be treated as policy.
  • Local officials signaled conditional cooperation, with NOPD chief Anne Kirkpatrick saying the department will work with available resources as city crime rates sit near multidecade lows.
  • Experts called the concept highly irregular and warned it could tie up roughly 11% of the state Guard during hurricane season, potentially straining emergency response.