Independent journalist Ken Klippenstein reported on Wednesday that National Guard units are being quietly activated for the midterms even though Pentagon leaders have said they have “no plans” to involve themselves in elections.
Citing military sources, he said the Guard’s mission covers all 50 states and has three aims: watching ballot drop boxes and polling places, protecting critical infrastructure, and defending against foreign cyberattacks.
Only seven states have publicly confirmed involvement: Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and Washington.
In Washington, Gov. Bob Ferguson offered county auditors an “Election Neighborhood Watch,” with plainclothes Guard members observing drop boxes. Klippenstein said Alabama and Oklahoma Guard teams responded to suspicious white-powder mail at election offices, and his sources say every state has placed its civil support teams on standby.
He takes aim at the reassurances from military leaders. Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told Congress he doesn’t expect any unlawful order about the military’s election role, a promise Klippenstein said has a loophole “big enough to drive a Humvee through.” Caine also said there were no plans to send federal troops or federalized Guard members to polling places, which Klippenstein noted doesn’t cover Guard units under governors’ control.
Klippenstein argued the military’s real election role is in cyberspace, including Cyber Command’s Task Force Raider, which he previously reported, and a vague definition of critical infrastructure. NORTHCOM holds operations plans covering cyberattacks, civil unrest and infrastructure defense, he said, and a senior officer told him as of June that he was still trying to set up a joint task force to define civilian and military roles.
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