IINA: Civil-Military Relations Under the Trump Administration (Part 2) -- Relations Between Civil Society and the Military: The Debate Over Domestic Policing Actions by the Military

By Noboru Yamaguchi, Visiting Professor, International University; Editor, IINA

Part 1 of this series pointed out differences between President Trump and his lieutenants, on the one hand, and the military in general, on the other, regarding the use of the military for domestic security missions: the former tends to favor such use, while the latter is more cautious. It is also a difference in attitude toward how the military, the largest and most powerful organization in the country, confronts people with guns at the ready, which may lead to a conception that the military stands against civil society. In considering this issue, which is directly related to the relationship between civil society and the military in the United States, we must understand the unique American institutions behind it.