Given the Constitutional parameters for use of the Militia, how can they be used LEGALLY overseas?

Question

Article One states that the Congress has the power to:

To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;

To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;

And does the President have ANY authority over a State militia unless Congress calls it into service?

Answer 1

Constitutionally, they cannot even be used in another state without the permission of that state's governor. That was one of the causes of the War for Southern Independence: President Lincoln ordered state militias into other states and if a governor balked, he declared them in rebellion. Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Kentucky were not likely to have joined the Confederacy without that rather stupid provocation.

However, the National Guard is no longer a state militia as it is financed by the federal government and can be federalized on a whim. The closest modern equivelent to a state militia are the state police forces.

Answer 2

No-I am retired military and a member of the Tennessee State Guard which is the state militia for Tennessee. The federal government has no jurisdiction over any official state militia unless it is "called up" by Congress. The state militia's were intended as a counter force to the government as well as a body of personnel to be available if required. Most states re-activated or re-established their state militias after the National Guard was pretty much federalized in total regardless of the political necessity of still calling it the State Name National Guard. First question is that it is within the paragraph restricted to in country use-repelling invasion and by that would not be available to send outside the borders.

Answer 3

Congress provides for it by giving the President and SECDEF the authority to federalize Army National Guard and Air National Guard personnel under certain circumstances.. Once federalized, their status is the same as other Regular component federal troops.

Realize that ARNG and ANG troops have dual status...they are both federal status as reserves of their respective services, and state statuses in their respective militias.

As far as calling them forth without federalizing them, there's no reason to do so.

MSgt, USAF (Retired)

Answer 4

President - Commander In Chief

Answer 5

by executive order or a vote in the full house of representatives