Four Questions Landry Must Answer About His Support for Militarization Over Disaster Preparedness
Gov. Landry Invokes Storm Threats to Justify Troop Deployment While Trump Guts the Systems That Actually Protect Louisianians
BATON ROUGE, LA — This week, Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry requested 1,000 National Guard troops be deployed to Baton Rouge, New Orleans, and Shreveport, joining Donald Trump’s push to militarize American cities. Sabotaging Our Safety is calling on journalists and residents in Louisiana to ask the governor about the glaring hypocrisies his request exposes. In his letter to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Landry cited Louisiana’s vulnerability to storms and disasters as justification, even as he remains complicit while Trump systematically dismantles federal disaster response infrastructure.
Here are four questions that Governor Landry needs to be asked regarding his request for National Guard troops in Louisiana:
If hurricanes “strain limited public safety resources,” why have you stood by while your ally Trump dismantles the very federal safety net that makes recovery possible?
Governor, which is it: Does Louisiana need stronger disaster infrastructure, or do you agree with Trump that FEMA is bloated and expendable?
If natural disasters are such a priority, why aren’t you criticizing Trump for withholding disaster relief to enforce immigration policy?
New Orleans is crumbling with failing infrastructure – can these 1,000 troops fix that, or are they just here to patrol the streets while our cities literally fall apart?
“Instead of insisting the federal government fully funds disaster relief programs or helps clean up toxic spills in ways Louisiana actually needs, Governor Landry is busy sucking up to Trump,” said Davante Lewis, Sabotaging Our Safety Advisory Council Member and Public Service Commissioner for Louisiana’s Third District. “Louisiana isn’t a war zone – it’s struggling because of Trump and Landry’s policies. We don’t need 1,000 troops standing around occupying our streets. We need a fully-funded disaster response system at the federal and state level.”
“Governor Landry begging the federal government to militarize our cities should scare us all. It’s also particularly damning that he’s using our state’s vulnerability to storms as cover for his refusal to stand up to his buddy Trump’s efforts to dismantle the very disaster preparedness systems Louisiana needs,” said Ashley Shelton, Sabotaging Our Safety Advisory Council Member and President of the Power Coalition for Electoral Justice. “If any National Guardsmen want to actually help Louisiana, they can start by shoring up the levees Trump’s budget cuts won’t fix. Give me a call.”
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