Photo By: Sgt. Amouris Coss
The Chief of the National Guard Bureau, Air Force General Joseph Lengyel, is dispelling rumors that the National Guard is moving in to enforce a national quarantine.
I hear unfounded rumors about #NationalGuard troops supporting a nationwide quarantine. Let me be clear: There has been no such discussion. … For news about the great work the Guard IS doing to support the #Covid_19 response, click the link. #COVID19 https://nationalguard.mil/coronavirus/
Chief of the National Guard Bureau, Air Force General Joseph Lengyel
However, Guard professionals are on the move in 28 states. According to a press release issued Friday, March 20:
As of this morning, more than 3,300 Air and Army National Guard professionals in 28 states are actively supporting the COVID-19 response at the direction of their governors. Those numbers can change rapidly as states identify needs and communicate them to their National Guard.
The following States have National Guard Personnel Activated: Ark., Ariz. Calif., Colo., Del., Fla., Ga., Iowa., Ill., Kan., Ky., La., Md., Maine, Mich., Mont., N.D., N.J., N.M., N.Y., Okla., Pa., P.R., R.I. S.C., Va., Vt., Wis.
Current National Guard COVID-19 response missions include, but are not limited to: Weapons of Mass Destruction – Civil Support Teams (WMD-CSTs) Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) training and sample collection; response planners; support to medical testing facilities; response liaisons and support to state Emergency Operations Centers; support to healthcare professionals – assessments, transportation; logistics support; assisting with disinfecting/cleaning of common public spaces; providing transportation support for health care providers; collecting and delivering samples; and assisting with sample administration.
Your transition statement — “However, guard professional are in the move in 28 states” — is weak and could appear to call the general’s statement into question. It would have been stronger to have worded it more along these lines: “Although Guard units are being activated in some states, they are being used to provide logistical support and not to enforce a quarantine.”
“Weak”? GTFO. Good journalists indeed call government official’s statements into question … especially by making a simple statement of fact for comparison (on the move in 28 states) which inherently makes a strong suggestion otherwise.