Democratic governors of some of the nation’s most populous states on Monday pushed back against President Donald Trump’s threat to deploy the U.S. military.
Donald Trump had earlier threatened to deploy the U.S. military unless governors dispatch National Guard units to “dominate the streets” in reaction to the violence that has gripped the country.
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker said he doesn’t believe the federal government can send military troops into his state. He accused the president of creating an “incendiary moment”
“I reject the notion that the federal government can send troops into the state of Illinois,” Pritzker said on CNN after Trump urged governors to deploy the Guard. If they did not, he said he would send in “thousands and thousands” of soldiers.
Pritzker was among the first governors to react to Trump’s comments, which came hours after the president called governors “weak” and urged them to take a more aggressive approach in controlling the protest.
It came as Americans gathered to protest police brutality against black Americans following the killing of George Floyd, who was handcuffed and on the ground pleading for breathe as a white police officer pressed a knee on his neck for several minutes.
Read also: George Floyd Protests Continue to Spread Across the United States
In New York, Governor Andrew Cuomo has not deployed the state’s National Guard to New York City, although he said earlier Monday the state had 13,000 troops that “we can use at any moment.”
“I say thank you but no thank you,” Cuomo said on CNN about Trump’s call to send military troops to the states.