Missouri Governor Mike Keheo (R) signed an order to bring in the Missouri National Guard as a “precautionary measure in reaction to recent instances of civil unrest across the country,” his office said.
“We respect, and will defend, the right to peacefully protest, but we will not tolerate violence or lawlessness in our state,” the governor said in a statement accompanying his executive order. “While other states may wait for chaos to ensue, the State of Missouri is taking a proactive approach in the event that assistance is needed to support local law enforcement in protecting our citizens and communities.”
The order states that protests expected to occur in Missouri “have created or may create conditions of distress and hazards to the safety, welfare, and property of the citizens and visitors of the communities beyond the capacities of local jurisdictions and other established agencies.”
As such, the “rule of law must be maintained in the cities of Kansas City, Springfield, St. Louis, and other affected communities, in the State of Missouri, for the protection, safety, welfare, and property of the citizens, visitors, and businesses of those communities,” the order adds.
The governor called and ordered “into active service such portions of the organized militia as he deems necessary to aid the executive officials of Missouri, to protect life and property.” The order is set to terminate on June 30 unless extended.
A statement from Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas’ office condemned the order, saying the mayor is “concerned with enhanced state enforcement for one set of protestors, but no action or aid to local law enforcement when Neo-Nazis march through Missouri’s urban streets.”
“Unnecessary escalation from our nation’s capital and state capitals undermines local law enforcement and makes all less safe,” Lucas’ office added.
