A retired military leader says President Donald Trump’s latest remarks to America’s top brass carried a hidden message that could blur the line between civilian and military roles.
On Tuesday, Trump, alongside Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, addressed senior military leaders in a meeting that some described as an “insult” and a “waste of time.” During his comments, Trump urged the military to begin training in American cities with the highest crime rates.
Retired Lieutenant General Mark Hertling, speaking on The Daily Beast Podcast, said the words carried implications that troubled him. “You’re putting an infantryman, a tanker, a truck driver in front of the American people,” Hertling said. “That would be like saying you and I could go out and arrest people and quell riots and do all those kinds of things.”
Hertling explained that while the military can support civilian authorities in specific circumstances, using troops for policing violates both the Constitution and federal law. “If manpower is needed, certainly military forces can go to an area and protect guard buildings, put up fences, do the kind of things that you need a lot of people to do,” he said.
“But that razor’s edge into policing activities again is, contrary to the Constitution and contrary to our laws. So it shouldn’t be done.” What alarmed him most was what he described as Trump’s subtle but clear message. “What I heard the president say yesterday was an implied remark that he was telling everyone in that room to be prepared to do that.”
Hertling warned that Trump’s framing seemed designed to stoke division, potentially laying the groundwork for deploying troops into American cities. Such a step, he stressed, would be extraordinary and dangerous. “That only happens once an insurrection occurs, like during the Civil War,” he said.
“So, unless he’s prepared to stoke that kind of insurrection by further dividing the American people and it turns to violence, soldiers are the means of last resort for any kind of police activity, primarily because they’re not trained to do things like that, and secondarily because it’s against the law.”
The comments arrive at a moment when Trump continues to clash with critics over his vision for law and order. For Hertling, the danger lies not just in what was said, but in what was implied. He cautioned that blurring military and civilian boundaries threatens both democratic norms and the rule of law.