Letter to the Hon. Donald Trump, President - Graves Joins Colleagues in Support of Governor's Request to POTUS to Retain National Guard Effort

Letter

Dear President Trump:
We are writing to urge you to approve the extension of funding for the continued use of the
National Guard under 502(f)(2)(A) of Title 32, United States Code, through July 31, 2020.
Governor John Bel Edwards has recently requested this authority to ensure the National Guard
can continue to respond to your Major Disaster Declaration in connection with COVID-19.
Furthermore, without this much needed deployment extension many national guardsmen who
were activated at the start of this pandemic would end up being just one day shy of the 90 day
threshold necessary to receive benefits for active duty service. This funding remains critical to
Louisiana¶s ongoing fight against the COVID-19 Pandemic.
The National Guard¶s unique capabilities haYe been an irreplaceable part of Louisiana¶s front
line response to COVID-19. As of the time of this letter, Louisiana¶s Soldiers and Airmen haYe
supported the testing of over 47,000 citizens, provided distribution of over 26 million items of
personal protective equipment, provided foodbank distribution of over 5 million pounds of food,
as well as participating in concurrent interagency planning and Incident Command Team
augmentation. Sustaining the National Guard forces through July 31, 2020, will enable Louisiana
to continue to reopen the state¶s econom\ b\ supporting aggressive action towards meeting
phased testing goals, distribution of medical supplies and protective equipment, and state-wide
foodbank operations. The unique capabilities of the National Guard remain a vital component of
Louisiana¶s goYernmental and interagency efforts.
We urge your prompt approval of this request so that Louisiana may continue to employ the
National Guard as deemed necessary to support COVID-19 response efforts. Thank you for your
assistance in this important request.