Tennessee Republicans supported President Donald Trump’s decision to send the National Guard to Memphis.
On Friday, Trump announced National Guard Members will be coming to Memphis.
“We’re going to Memphis. Memphis is deeply troubled. The mayor – he’s a Democrat mayor – is happy, the governor is happy…Deepy troubled. We’re going to fix that just like we did Washington,” Trump said on Fox News’ “Fox and Friends.”
“We’ll bring in the military too, if we need it,” Trump added.
According to The Hill, last year, FBI data showed Memphis having the highest violent crime rate of any American city, with 2,501 violent crimes per 100,000 people.
In May, FBI Director Kash Patel labeled Memphis the “homicide capital” of America.
This deployment of federal troops comes after Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Representative Andy Ogles (R-TN-05) called on the president to take this action last month.
Reacting to the news, Blackburn said Trump answered her “call to make Memphis Safe Again.”
“Time and time again, he has stepped in to restore law and order in blue cities that refuse to protect their own citizens, and he’s just getting started,” she stated.
Ogles said the president’s actions will “save lives and save our country.”
State Senator Brent Taylor (R-Memphis), who has made an effort to clean up the city’s crime problems, thanked the president for taking these actions.
“Public safety is the first responsibility of government. Unfortunately, Memphians and all of West Tennesseans alike are suffering from unacceptable crime-fatigue,” he explained. “I’m optimistic this deployment of National Guard personnel will make for a safer Memphis and Shelby County.”
“The best way to Make Memphis Matter, is to Make Memphis Safe! Let’s get busy; we have a city to save,” he added.
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Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of The Star News Network. Email tips to Zachery at [email protected].
Photo “National Guard Members” by The National Guard.
