Stupid.......

White House draws contrast between Democrat-led cities in defense of National Guard presence

From CNN's Alejandra Jaramillo

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt strongly defended the ongoing National Guard presence in Washington DC, while taking aim at Democratic mayors in other major cities, including Chicago and Portland, Oregon, during a press briefing Monday.

“National Guard members continue to be out on the streets because Washington, DC, has invited the National Guard here,” Leavitt said.

While DC Mayor Muriel Bowser welcomed an increase in federal law enforcement, she pushed back on President Donald Trump’s deployment of the guard as an inefficient use of resources. The city’s attorney general also sued over the deployment.

“The National Guard is still here because the president and the mayor agree that it’s a good thing for the city, just like you’re seeing in Memphis, for instance, where we’ll have National Guard deployed as well,” Leavitt said.

Memphis Mayor Paul Young has also pushed back on the guard’s deployment, telling CNN last month he was “not happy” with the Trump administration for the move.

The press secretary praised Bowser’s cooperation with the Trump administration’s efforts, calling her approach “the right thing” and contrasting it with what she described as political obstruction in other cities.

She continued by criticizing mayors in cities such as Portland and Chicago, alleging that political opposition to Trump was getting in the way of public safety. “It’s a shame that we see in some cities across the country that their mayors are just simply refusing to cooperate because they don’t like Donald Trump, and that’s what this boils down to,” she said.

When pressed about the potential for long-term National Guard deployments in cities like Portland and Chicago, should the courts allow it, Leavitt pushed back on the idea that local leaders should be alarmed.

“Why should they be concerned about the federal government offering help to make their cities a safer place?” she asked.