In the past quarter-century, National Guard troops have hoisted desperate survivors from rooftops in Hurricane Katrina. Fought the flames of devastating wildfires in Maui and Los Angeles. Searched for survivors and secured the skies after 9/11. And deployed in the hundreds of thousands to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Delivering relief and maintaining order in times of great need is a well-established part of the guard’s mission. But as the guard fulfills a different kind of role envisioned by President Donald Trump, supporting a crackdown on crime in Washington, D.C., that he now aims to expand to Memphis, Tennessee, and other cities, several generals who have led guard troops fear that shift will damage the force.

That includes, they say, hurting morale, weakening recruiting and re

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