McMaster orders SC National Guard troops to DC

by WIS News 10 Staff

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster has ordered 200 state National Guardsmen to Washington, D.C.

McMaster announced the deployment Saturday evening on X, which he said was to support President Donald Trump’s recent efforts to curb what the latter described as a crime emergency in the nation’s capital.

I’ve authorized the deployment of 200 S.C. National Guardsmen to support President Trump in his mission to restore law and order to our nation’s capital. The federal government will pay for this deployment under Title 32. Our National Guard will work to assist President Trump’s…
— Gov. Henry McMaster (@henrymcmaster) August 16, 2025

The governor also wrote that the federal government will fund the deployment. He added that those troops would be able to come back to South Carolina to assist with recovery from a hurricane or other natural disaster.

“South Carolina is proud to stand with President Trump as he works to restore law and order to our nation’s capital and ensure safety for all who live, work, and visit there,” McMaster said in a statement released by his office Saturday night. “As our National Guard works to support President Trump’s mission, should a hurricane or natural disaster threaten our state, these men and women can and will be immediately recalled home to respond.”

When asked on Aug. 11 whether he would deploy troops, McMaster said Trump “hadn’t asked” at the time. He did, however, commend the president for his actions.

“If you’ve been up there lately, you’ve seen the mess,” McMaster said on Aug. 11. “I think he [Trump] mentioned that he was thinking of doing this some months ago. And if you’ve been up lately, you know it’s unsafe, it’s unclean, it’s dirty, it’s loud, it’s raucous, it’s dangerous.”

You can watch his full comments from Aug. 11 below:

On Aug. 11, South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster addressed recent questions surrounding the state National Guard’s role in federal law enforcement efforts.

West Virginia also announced Saturday it would deploy its own National Guard troops to Washington, D.C.

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