AUSTIN (KXAN) — Despite warnings from the governor, the Texas National Guard was largely not a factor during Saturday’s “No Kings” protests.
The seeming lack of presence was a welcome sight for at least one Austin state senator who attended the Capitol protest.
“You want your first responders to plan for the possibility of a volatile circumstance,” said Sen. Sarah Eckhardt, D-Austin. “You never want to use your first responders as a prop to create a volatile circumstance.”
Leading up to the June 14 protests, Gov. Greg Abbott said 5,000 Texas National Guard soldiers and 2,000 Texas Department of Public Safety troopers were being sent to undisclosed cities around the state “to maintain order and defend innocent Texas property.”
-
Texas National Guard soldiers stand next to Texas Department of Public Safety troopers near the Alamo at the June 14 “No Kings” protest in San Antonio. (Courtesy Texas DPS) -
Texas National Guard soldiers stand next to Texas Department of Public Safety troopers near the Alamo at the June 14 “No Kings” protest in San Antonio. (Courtesy Texas DPS)
The state’s soldiers were on “standby” in areas with planned mass demonstrations “in case they are needed,” a spokesperson for Abbott previously told KXAN.
For operational security reasons, the governor’s office can’t disclose where soldiers were sent.
On social media, DPS shared photos of its troopers standing alongside Texas National Guard soldiers, wearing green camouflage, during protests near the Alamo in San Antonio. Austin Mayor Kirk Watson previously confirmed he was informed the Texas National Guard would be “prepared to assist” DPS “if deemed necessary.” Despite a credible threat targeting lawmakers, KXAN did not see them at the Austin Capitol protest, as some expected.
KXAN investigators reached back out to major cities with planned protests. Dallas deferred questions to the Texas National Guard, which is under the Texas Military Department. Like the governor’s office, the TMD also does not provide details about its operations for security reasons — which would include where soldiers were sent to respond in the event of protest violence.
Fort Worth and Houston did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“We did not have [National Guard] at the El Paso demonstrations,” said city spokesperson Laura Cruz Acosta.
“I am so proud of our local, our state and our federal law enforcement personnel,” Eckhardt added. “They planned for what may have been a volatile circumstance. They did not create one. It was really a beautiful example of cooperation.”