"I directed the National Guard to be ready should they be needed. They remain ready in the event they are needed to help keep the peace, ensure public safety, and allow for peaceful demonstrations," the governor said in a statement Thursday.
With the fragile situation in the Twin Cities following an aggressive increase in immigration enforcement there, another battle over control of the National Guard could be brewing as the president continues to test his authority to use the military in domestic conflicts and state officials continue to fight back.
Walz — himself a retired National Guard veteran — indicated a direct confrontation with federal agents is not on the table, saying in an executive order troops would "support public safety, security services, and law enforcement activities."
In contrast to the unrest surrounding Floyd’s killing, the possibility of calling up the guard now comes in a very different context, following a year of President Donald Trump’s mostly unsuccessful efforts to federalize National Guard troops in large cities with Democrat-run administrations, calling those cities "lawless" and "hellholes."