Image Credit: Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris / Facebook , Paul Young / Facebook & Canva
The Tennessee Conservative [By Olivia Lupia] –
With the National Guard soon expected to begin a multiagency operation under the Memphis Safe Task Force, Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris and Memphis Mayor Paul Young, both Democrats, appear to be at odds over the troops’ upcoming presence.
In Memphis, while Mayor Young has expressed that he ultimately does not think the Guard is the right solution to the city’s crime issues, he seems to be resigned to the deployment, committing to “work strategically to ensure this happens in a way that truly benefits and strengthens our community.”
And Young seems to carry a slightly more optimistic tone about the role of the Guard after conversations with Deputy Mayor Lindsey Appiah and Police Chief Pamela Smith of Washington, D.C. regarding their experiences with the Guard in the capitol city.
“What we heard was encouraging. The Guard there served as ‘eyes and ears on the streets’, more like a large-scale neighborhood watch than frontline police officers. This extended police capacity brought a sense of calm, and at the end of the 30-day deployment, the community feedback they received was generally positive. The other federal agencies that engaged in D.C. partnered with the city to bring more resources and capacity to the work D.C. was already doing in three key areas,” said Young.
He particularly spoke to the potential of the Guard to help the city with beautification efforts through the bolstering of ongoing projects like clearing vacant lots, graffiti clean-up, and trash removal. He emphasized, “Clean streets are a crime prevention tool, and economic development strategy, and a morale booster all at once.”
As for law enforcement, the mayor stated that the additional support from federal partners will allow the city to build on the momentum in combatting crime as he believes the city “is already making progress with crime down across the board.”
“For me, this is about people, not politics. Yes, I am a Democratic mayor, and I don’t believe the National Guard is the right tool for driving down crime, but this situation calls on me to reach across the aisle. It calls on us to do what is best for our community in this moment and for our future,” Young proclaimed.
Meanwhile, Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris is, “Not happy at all with occupation, armored vehicles, semi-automatic weapons, and military personnel in fatigues.”
He continues to call the deployment a “federal occupation” and has repeatedly denounced a need for the Guard, accusing the Trump administration of trying to “depict Tennessee as a hellscape” and “warzone”.
“We don’t need the National Guard on our streets. I trust our law enforcement, teachers, organizers, and youth to keep building a safer, stronger future,” Harris posted in response to a White House video promoting the upcoming mission.
And Harris recently drew national attention when he blamed a “proliferation of guns” for rising crime rates.
He cited permit-less carry as the impetus for “many guns ending up in many, many places where they are stolen, stolen out of cars and end up in the criminal stream. And we’ve seen our crime statistics go up dramatically as a result of those kinds of laws being passed out of Nashville.”
Another social media post read, “I don’t believe Tennessee should be the first state in the South to be occupied by military forces. I’d rather see the FBI field office re-open in West Tennessee, the restoration of our federal money for gun violence intervention, and the end to permit-less carry.”
But in a rare moment of agreement, both radio host Todd Starnes host and Mayor Harris called on Governor Lee to offer more transparency and better accountability to the public regarding the details of the deployment during a recent interview.
“The governor does need to show some leadership, and we just haven’t heard a lot from the governor lately,” concurred Starnes.
There is still no official start date for the task force, though State Senator Brent Taylor (R-Memphis-District 31) has speculated the troops could be in Memphis by the end of the month.
About the Author: Olivia Lupia is a political refugee from Colorado who now calls Tennessee home. A proud follower of Christ, she views all political happenings through a Biblical lens and aims to utilize her knowledge and experience to educate and equip others. Olivia is an outspoken conservative who has run for local office, managed campaigns, and been highly involved with state & local GOPs, state legislatures, and other grassroots organizations and movements. Olivia can be reached at olivia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
4 Responses
Memphis and Shelby County are hopeless. Trump is being kind by trying to help them.
It’s an incredibly dangerous County. There’s a reason it is ranked the most dangerous place in the US.
Don’t go unless you must, and if you must carry a gun and watch your back – they sneak up behind people and shoot them in the back of the head.
Dem dimmercraps wants dey crime to continue. Dey darlins din’t do nuffin.
Hmmm….. These two just admitted with their pathetic whines and cries that they have failed big time and they are so stupid that they try to explain away their failure with guns and the appearance the Guard will make as the problem.
Typical Democrat deflection leaving a WTF reaction to their blame everything babbling responses……
No Lee Harris, it doesn’t “depict Tennessee as a hellscape” and “warzone”.” It depicts Memphis & Shelby Co. that way, and it is! My guess is that neither of you live in the crime ridden areas. Dem leadership is the Dem problem.