The United States Armed Forces and Their Role in Domestic Affairs
- MWEG
- 16 hours ago
- 7 min read
The United States military is considered the most powerful of all armed forces in the world and has long legitimized the nation’s standing as a global leader. Military members take an oath to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign or domestic.” The National Guard and military reserves respond locally to domestic emergencies, including natural disasters, and provide national security as needed. This article offers an overview of armed forces, the similarities and differences between the active duty military and the National Guard/reserves, and their role in domestic affairs.
The founding of military branches
Before America’s independence and within a period of less than five months, the First and Second Continental Congresses authorized what would become the first three branches of the military.
With George Washington appointed its commander, the “Continental Army” was authorized by the First Continental Congress in June of 1775. When the nation won independence in 1776, the U.S. Army earned its official name, and it remains the country’s largest military force both in scope and personnel. It continues to set the highest standards for militaries around the world.
Recognizing the need to defend the land from British troops arriving by sea, in October of 1775 the Second Continental Congress authorized the “Continental Navy” and purchased two ships. The U.S. Navy has grown since then to incorporate all types of sea vessels and aircraft. In November, only one month after the formation of a navy, the Continental Congress authorized two battalions of marines to support Continental Navy operations. The U.S. Marine Corps remains the amphibious branch of the armed forces today and resides within the U.S. Naval structure.
The National Guard dates back even further — to 1636 — when local militias formed to protect their villages from attack. It was formally organized in 1916. As each branch of the armed forces was founded, reserves were created to answer wartime and national emergencies and respond to state and territorial needs.
The U.S. Coast Guard formed in 1790 when the newly formed nation discovered a need to prevent smuggling by enforcing tariff and trade laws. It has grown to protect and defend domestic waters as well as respond to conflicts and fight wars internationally.
The U.S. Air Force became officially authorized by the National Security Act of 1947 (incidentally, the same act that authorized the Central Intelligence Agency). The military was in the business of war in the skies long before, however. Beginning in 1907, the Army instituted a small aeronautical unit that flew hot air balloons and expanded to incorporate multiple air districts and planes through the first and second world wars. Today, the Air Force boasts the latest technologies in air assault and defense and is the largest in the world with more than 5,200 aircraft. The newest of all, the U.S. Space Force was established in 2019 to “harness space effectively” in order for the military to secure satellite communications and more. It operates under the U.S. Air Force.
U.S. military, National Guard, and reserves
The Department of Defense
As the largest federal entity, the Armed Forces are housed under the Department of Defense (DOD), or an alternate title yet unapproved by Congress, the Department of War. The Coast Guard is the exception and resides within the Department of Homeland Security. Congress grants the DOD one third of the nation’s budget for the expansive task of protecting the Constitution and defending the country against threats. The U.S. president leads as commander in chief, and their appointed secretary of defense manages the department and sits on the presidential Cabinet.
Domestic affairs
Organized within each state and territory, the National Guard is uniquely positioned to respond to domestic affairs. When called upon by the governor of a state or territory, or the president of the country, troops respond to domestic needs that cannot be managed by law enforcement alone. States have mobilized their National Guard for various local or regional incidents and throughout U.S. history. Federal activations of the Guard are much less common.
Full-time military and National Guard members have been federally activated and mobilized domestically dozens of times, including but not limited to these incidents:
The federal vs. state standoff for civil rights in Little Rock, Arkansas (1957)
Kent State University shooting, where National Guard troops killed students protesting the Vietnam War in Ohio (1970)
Rodney King riots, where one of the largest occurrences of civil unrest erupted in Los Angeles, California (1992)
Hurricane Katrina, which prompted the activation of National Guard troops for evacuation, rescue, and relief to Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama (2005)
The COVID-19 pandemic, when National Guard assisted with logistics and organization of testing, treatment, and vaccinations throughout the nation (2020)
Key legislation
Several laws and resolutions govern domestic involvement of the Armed Forces. The following excerpts from a previously published MWEG article, with the addition of the War Powers Resolution, provide key details.
Insurrection Act
“The Insurrection Act is actually a series of laws that empower the president to deploy military forces for domestic affairs. The laws give the president exclusive power to deploy troops in the event that a state legislature asks for enforcement aid, or to ‘suppress rebellion,’ when state or local resources cannot or are unwilling to uphold laws, or when the execution of a law requires enforcement.”
Posse Comitatus
“The Insurrection Act is actually the rare exception to the Posse Comitatus Act, (or ‘power of the country’), which prohibits U.S. military and National Guard involvement in domestic affairs. This law established the long-standing tradition of the military refraining from interfering with civilian enforcement — a standard of liberty widely respected across political parties. Invoking the Insurrection Act pauses the Posse Comitatus Act until a natural or legal resolution occurs.” The Coast Guard is exempt from this law.
Martial law
The military acts under “martial law” when they take over for civilian forces rather than assisting. Though declared many times over contentious state boundaries in the nation’s early days, the last time federal martial law was declared was after World War II in 1944 when the government returned civilian rule to Hawaii. The Brennan Center for Justice points out that the courts have not ruled on how martial law fits into the Constitution.
War Powers Resolution
Enacted in 1973, the War Powers Resolution narrowed presidential power in committing troops to hostilities under three circumstances.
The president's powers to introduce the U.S. Armed Forces into situations of hostilities or imminent hostilities are exercised only pursuant to:
1) a declaration of war,
2) specific statutory authorization, or
3) a national emergency created by attack upon the U.S., its territories or possessions, or its armed forces.
What the Constitution says about authority of the military in domestic affairs
Executive branch (presidential)
“The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States.” U.S. Constitution
In domestic matters, the law states the president has the authority to mobilize National Guard troops from any state(s) or territory(ies) whenever:
1) the U.S., or any of the commonwealths or possessions, is invaded or is in danger of invasion by a foreign nation;
2) there is a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the U.S. government; or
3) the president is unable with the regular forces to execute the laws of the country.
Legislative branch (congressional)
“To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress.” U.S. Constitution
Congress is assigned the domestic domestic power to provide for and govern the militia, or National Guard. The legislative body composed of representatives of the people was given these powers in Article I to avoid the burden or abuse of any one person in declaring war or using the military as a mechanism to gain more individual power.
States and territories
“The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.” U.S. Constitution, 10th Amendment
The governor of each state and territory possesses the authority to call on the National Guard to respond to emergencies or uprisings in their state. The 10th Amendment quoted above and anti-commandeering doctrine place limits on the federal government in states’ affairs. Constitutional law has established that state resources and personnel cannot be used for federal objectives unless the state consents. However, the president can federalize the states’ National Guard and reserves units under Title 10 of the U.S. Code, meaning they can be ordered to serve full time as specialized units of the federal military.
“A better cause”
Nevertheless, the Nephites were inspired by a better cause, for they were not fighting for monarchy nor power but they were fighting for their homes and their liberties, their wives and their children, and their all, yea, for their rites of worship and their church. Alma 43:45
Like the Nephites, in their oath to protect and defend the Constitution, the U.S. armed forces take inspiration from “a better cause,” protecting citizens and the land from foreign and domestic threats.
This article was written by Sherilyn Stevenson, lead researcher and writer at Mormon Women for Ethical Government.
