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The Department of Defense (DOD) rejected a second request from DC Mayor Muriel Bowser asking for the deployment of the District of Columbia National Guard. Bowser claims urgent aid is needed to receive and shelter busloads of migrants arriving from border states Texas and Arizona. 

Since April Republican governors Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas and Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey have been exporting a small portion of the crisis on the border to cities in the North. They have bussed thousands of migrants into DC and New York to call attention to President Biden’s "failing border policies".  

On Monday the DOD also denied Bowser's request for use of the D.C. Armory as a staging station for the city's unexpected arrivals.

DC Mayor of Sanctuary City 

In late July, Bowser estimated that 4,800 migrants had been bussed in from the southern border. That was when she first requested help with the “humanitarian crisis.” She claimed that the homeless shelters are filled to the brim. And her city was at a “tipping point”. 

In the last month the situation has only gotten worse for DC. Like several Democrat-run cities the DC Mayor declared her city is a “sanctuary city” soon after her election. And the city government has claimed they will not cooperate with Federal enforcement of immigration law. And Mayor Bowser has been adamant that her city would be welcoming to whoever shows up.

Second rejected request

The Pentagon rejected Bowser’s first request to deploy Guard troops earlier in August. They claimed that doing so would negatively impact the Guard’s readiness.  

In the second rejection the DOD reaffirmed the agency’s concerns that deploying Guard troops would be unwise. And insists that non-governmental organizations are assisting migrants. 

In a letter to Bowser on Monday, the Pentagon said the DC Guard doesn’t have training or equipment to care for migrants. And the Armory is not suitable as a staging area. The building is not equipped with air conditioning and could not accommodate overnight stays.

Pentagon Executive Secretary Kelly Bulliner Holly said deploying the Guard would be “inappropriate to the task, regardless of the duration or number of personnel involved.” 

“The DCNG has no specific experience in or training for this kind of mission or unique skills for providing facility management, feeding, sanitation, or ground support,” Holly added.  

Mayor Bowser posted on Twitter that the city continues to “move forward with our planning to ensure that when people are coming through DC on their way to their final destination that we have a humane setting for them.”  

“As we do that, we remain focused on working with District agencies and local providers to ensure our local systems can continue to function and that we can continue to meet the very real and significant needs of DC residents,” she added.