When it comes to sending National Guard troops to 51ºÚÁÏ to help fight crime, President Donald Trump continues to talk about it.
On Monday, Trump said such a deployment could soon be coming to 51ºÚÁÏ. He made his remarks during a press conference in the Oval Office after he signed a memo directing the National Guard and other federal personnel to Memphis.
"We want to save these places," Trump said, referring to Chicago and 51ºÚÁÏ, noting that Chicago was "probably next."
The possibility first came to light Friday, when Trump mentioned it on the Fox News show "Fox & Friends."
But since that mention, the offices of GOP U.S. Sens. Josh Hawley and Eric Schmitt — as well as Democratic U.S. Rep. Wesley Bell, whose district includes the city — have not heard any specific details of such a move.
51ºÚÁÏ Mayor Cara Spencer said she has not been contacted about a National Guard deployment, and that the office of Gov. Mike Kehoe told her the same thing.
Trump's idea seems to have been spurred by a conversation he had last week with Jim Vena, CEO of the Union Pacific railroad company. Vena was in Washington to talk about the railroad's proposed $85 billion merger.
Trump said Vena endorsed sending the National Guard to Memphis and then suggested a similar move for 51ºÚÁÏ.
Trump said Vena told him: "Sir, please, do me a favor: 51ºÚÁÏ has been so badly hit, so very hard."
Union Pacific spokesperson Kristen South did not directly address the comment, saying in a statement that Vena and Trump’s meeting had “addressed the safety and security of all Americans ..."
