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Just Security: Crisis of Command: The Pentagon, The President, and January 6

The National Guard took more than three hours to respond to the January 6th riot at the U.S. Capitol. That delay has been the subject of multiple inquiries.

In a new post for Just Security, journalists Ryan Goodman and Justin Hendrix cobble together existing reports to posit an explosive new theory: military leaders were reluctant to deploy the Guard because they were concerned that then-President Donald Trump would invoke the Insurrection Act and use the troops to advance his plot to overthrow the results of the 2020 election.

“What was at stake was the prospect of an illegal order from the President and thwarting a potential scheme to undermine the peaceful transfer of power,” Goodman and Hendrix write. “Ultimately, the outcome of the Pentagon’s decisions may have been best for the nation, even if it extended the period of time during which Congress was in harm’s way.”

Read their full report here.