Majority of Detroit Caucus Opposes Bill to Recruit and Retain National Guard Members
Legislation comes in face of current threats of city takeover by the Trump administration
Press Release | Office of State Rep. Stephanie Young, Detroit Caucus Chair
LANSING, Mich., Oct. 2, 2025 — Yesterday, the Michigan House of Representatives passed House Bill 4962 in a 93-16 vote. This legislation is meant to recruit and retain national guard members by creating the Michigan National Guard Member Benefits Fund. Lawmakers expressed concern over recent threats by the Trump administration to use cities like Detroit as training grounds under the guise of fighting crime, even though the evidence does not support such claims. The Detroit Caucus expressed that this comes at the wrong time in our nation’s history.
“At a time when the federal government is threatening to send troops into Detroit, trying to recruit and retain that very force is the last thing Michigan should be doing. I support the National Guard, but the Trump administration has broken our community’s trust and confidence in his ability to use the force responsibly. We should be focusing our attention on investments for our schools, housing and infrastructure,” said state Rep. Stephanie A. Young (D-Detroit), Detroit Caucus chair.
The passage of this bill comes a little more than a week after Vice President JD Vance said the federal government would be ‘happy’ to send Guard troops to Detroit and less than a month after U.S. Senate candidate Mike Rogers urged President Donald Trump to deploy the guard. Governor Grethchen Whitmer has since responded saying that a deployment to Detroit is unwarranted.
“Earlier this week, President Trump said he wanted to use American cities as ‘training grounds’ for the military. Crime in Detroit is already on the decline. We don’t need to militarize a city that is healing — we need to keep investing in local solutions that are already working,” said state Rep. Helena Scott (D-Detroit), Detroit Caucus vice chair.
Mike Rogers highlighted a surge in violent crimes in his call for the deployment of the National Guard to Detroit while JD Vance touted it as a means to “to take back American streets.” However, the city’s crime rate has fallen in recent years.
“I am unable to support this legislation at this time because, unfortunately, the National Guard is being politicized and mobilized to take actions against civilians in ways that courts have deemed illegal. President Trump has stated his desire to use “dangerous” American cities as “training grounds” for troops. Detroit residents will feel unsafe if National Guard members are deployed into our community like a hostile, occupying military force,” said state Rep. Tonya Myers Phillips (D-Detroit), Detroit Caucus treasurer.
“I strongly value the service of our Guard members. But my concern lies with this legislation and the troubling context in which it appears. Public safety depends on clear priorities and lawful leadership. When the U.S. President openly talks about using cities like Detroit as military training grounds, people lose faith in the responsible use of our National Guard. Redirecting funds away from existing educational benefits at a time like this only deepens that mistrust,” said state Rep. Tyrone Carter (D-Detroit), Detroit Caucus member.
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