OKLAHOMA CITY – About 160 members of the Oklahoma National Guard will deploy to secure Washington, D.C.
A send-off ceremony was held Monday at the Armed Forces Reserve Center in Mustang for members of the Oklahoma National Guard’s Task Force Thunder participating in the D.C. Safe and Beautiful mission. The guard will deploy over the coming days.
The mission will last about 90 days.
“Our Guardsmen routinely answer the call to serve and support their community, state and nation,” said Maj. Gen. Thomas H. Mancino, adjutant general for Oklahoma. “As with many state-side support missions, this mission is voluntary, and I am so proud of each and every one of our Guardsmen as they continue to step forward.”
Gov. Kevin Stitt authorized members to participate.
His office said Tuesday that the deployment is funded by the federal government, but did not provide a cost.
Sarah Corley, a Stitt spokeswoman, said the mission is part of President Donald Trump’s ongoing request for support from the states to “protect the federal enclave of D.C.”
Trump in March signed an executive order creating the D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force and assigned it wide-ranging responsibilities, including providing more law enforcement presence in areas such as the National Mall and Memorial Parks, museums, monuments, Lafayette Park and Union Station.
The executive order also indicated it would work to beautify public spaces.
Over 2,000 national guard troops are already in D.C.
Last month, a federal judge ruled that the Trump administration’s decision to deploy the National Guard was illegal. The judge paused the order to give the Trump administration time to appeal the Nov. 20 decision or to remove the guard. The Trump administration has appealed.
U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth pledged last week to increase the number of troops in Washington D.C. by 500 following the shooting of two on-duty guard members.
West Virginia National Guard Spc. Sarah Beckstrom died Nov. 27 after a targeted attack blocks from the White House.
Another victim, U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe of Martinsburg, West Virginia, remains hospitalized after being shot.
Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, an Afghan refugee, faces a charge of first-degree murder while armed, possession of a firearm and assault with intent to kill. He pleaded not guilty Tuesday during an arrangement hearing.
Republished in partnership with Oklahoma Voice under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. Oklahoma Voice is a part of States Newsroom which is a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oklahoma Voice maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Janelle Stecklein for questions: info@oklahomavoice.com. Follow Oklahoma Voice on Facebook and Twitter.
Barbara Hoberock is a senior reporter with Oklahoma Voice. She has covered the statehouse since 1994 and served as Tulsa World Capitol Bureau chief. Hoberock covers statewide elected officials, the legislature, agencies, state issues, appellate courts and elections.
