Make no mistake: Gov. John Kasich does not agree with President Trump on many issues. But he says if President Trump asks for Ohio National Guard troops, he’ll comply.
Trump said this week that he wants to send up to 4,000 National Guard troops to the border with Mexico to prevent undocumented immigrants from entering the country. On Wednesday, he signed a proclamation directing the Department of Homeland Security and the Pentagon to work with governors to deploy troops.
Governors of several border states, including Texas, New Mexico and Arizona, say they support the plan. But governors of states like Nevada and Oregon say they will not follow orders, while most have yet to receive the request.
As for Ohio, Kasich says no reason to reject Trump’s request.
“You know, we have apparently done that before. We sent an engineering group down, I’m told, at a request,” Kasich said. “So it makes sense. He’s the president and if he says there’s a reason to go there, I wouldn’t see any reason why we wouldn’t accommodate him. We’ll have to see.”
Stephanie Beougher, public information officer for the Ohio Adjutant General – which controls the Ohio National Guard forces and military reserve – says the office doesn’t have a request to provide support for the mission border at this time.
