Hochul and Adams Push Back On Trump’s Threats To Deploy National Guard In NYC

By Yehuda Alter

Governor Hochul and Mayor Adams are pushing back at President Trump’s tentative plans of deploying the National Guard in New York City, like he did in Washington D.C. 

Trump recently floated the idea of deploying the National Guard in both NYC and Los Angeles, ostensibly due to rising crime levels in those major cities. In Washington D.C. he was able to do it under the Home Rule Act of 1973, which is a unique act that gives emergency powers to the federal government to take control of the capital’s police for a limited time, but it’s unclear under what authorities Trump would be able to replicate that in other states. 

The president’s legal powers to deploy the National Guard are under scrutiny now after he invoked the Insurrection Act by claiming a rebellion in Los Angeles to deploy troops during the recent protests against ICE. California accused Trump of acting illegally and filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, which is currently ongoing. 

If Trump does find a way to deploy troops in NYC, Hochul would have limited ways to legally stop federal orders. During a press conference on Tuesday she said that if Trump does go ahead, “I have a feeling that right around that time, my National Guard might be really busy on other issues.”

Technically, Trump would be able to reassign the National Guard even if they were busy with other state matters, but Hochul might be hoping that the negative optics of such a move would deter the president.  

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