Local Opinion: Lake would use National Guard as political pawn

The following is the opinion and analysis of the writer:

Kari Lake, a woman who spent her life reading other people’s copy, now wants to be a boss – the Commander and Chief of the Arizona National Guard. That should make every Guard soldier and airman nervous. Why? Because she admires the conspiracy crowd, Q-Anon crackpots, and Fox News fearmongers who see the border as prime real estate for political stunts, turning human beings into objects. And she already has an example, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.

Guardsmen are unique in the military; we serve both state and federal governments. On federal orders, called Title 10, Guardsmen become part of the regular force. As such, many Guardsmen, including me, are deployed to support the global war on terror. During my 15-month deployment, we were covered by federal law. That law prevented us from losing our jobs, and businesses, and houses. We collected retirement points, got access to the VA, collected basic allowance for quarters, and combat pay. We also had plenty of time to prepare, got sent for additional training, and were re-issued equipment to ensure we could do the job.

But under state orders, or State of Arizona activation orders, those federal benefits do not apply. Meaning that we are not protected from being fired from our full-time jobs, we do not collect retirement points, we are not considered “veterans” for state activation and therefore not eligible for VA benefits. State activation is the equivalent of a break in service. You wear the uniform, but it does not count. Guardsmen on state orders get paid. But that’s it.

In Texas, Gov. Abbot has involuntarily activated thousands of Guardsmen as a political stunt. This activation started in March 2021 with volunteers and grew steadily with Abbott’s re-election campaign to 6,500 troops by November 2021. That state activation, known as “Operation Lone Star,” continues today with Abbott bragging about the 10,000 involuntarily activated personnel doing…nothing... but costing the state nearly $1 billion.

Meanwhile, these Guardsmen have lost jobs, businesses, time at college, marriages, and 10 of them have lost their lives. They did not get the time they needed to settle things, many were activated and found themselves on the border 72 hours later. They did not get re-issue, they did not get assigned housing, they did not even get an area of operation with proper toilet facilities.

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But hey, Abbott got his bright, shiny object to show Trump and the Fox News hosts how tough he is.

Now Lake wants to channel that misguided energy here in Arizona where the National Guard can again become human pawns for the aggrandizement of politicians. I doubt Lake will treat my fellow soldiers and airmen like human beings. She already plans to make a big splash on the border, at their expense. If Abbott’s example is anything to go by, it will not be pretty.

Fellow Guardsmen – do not vote for Lake. We signed up to be guardians of freedom, not shiny objects for self-promotion. Take it from an old, fat, retired Master Sergeant. Lake is a bad boss. If you cannot vote blue, leave it blank!