(The Center Square) – A new bill seeks to make Arizona the first state in the country to prevent its National Guard from fighting in wars not authorized by Congress.
State Sen. Wendy Rogers, R-Flagstaff, who served in the Air Force for 20 years, introduced Senate Bill 1047. The legislation says Arizona’s National Guard can’t “be released from the state into active duty combat unless the United States Congress has passed an official Declaration of War or has taken official action pursuant to Article 1, Section 8, Clause 15” of the Constitution.
The article allows Congress to federalize the National Guard to repel invasions, put down an insurrection and enforce America’s laws.
SB 1047, also known as the Defend the Guard bill, would require the Arizona governor to “take all actions necessary to comply” with the order.
Nationwide, the Defend the Guard bill has been pushed by an organization called Bring Our Troops Home, founded by Sgt. Dan McKnight, a 13-year veteran of the U.S. armed forces who served 18 months in Afghanistan from 2005 to 2007.
In the past, Trump administration officials, including Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., have endorsed the bill.
Also, Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Yuma, has supported the bill.
Defend the Guard bill is a “state-based prohibition on the use of militia unless [it has] been activated federally with proper authority,” McKnight told The Center Square.
“If they want ’em to fight in Afghanistan, Uzbekistan or Venezuela, the first thing they have to do is have that proper authorization from Congress,” he said.
The Defend the Guard bill is attempting to give governors and states “one more ounce of resistance that they can apply to the federal government to protect their own militia and citizens,” he explained.
The last time America had a congressionally approved war was in 1942 during World War II against Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania.
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