T he North Carolina National Guard exists to protect and serve the people of our state — not to be deployed for political theater hundreds of miles away.

Yet recent reports in The Washington Post reveal the administration is considering federalizing state National Guard units, including some of ours, to patrol Washington, D.C., as part of a broader “civil unrest” plan. This raises serious legal, operational and moral concerns — and comes at the worst possible time for North Carolina.

The president has direct authority over the D.C. National Guard and can federalize state units for domestic missions. Supporters claim this can boost manpower without expanding local police forces. But legality is not the same as necessity, and so-called cost-effectiveness depends on context.

Nor is that a

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