Twenty-five House Democrats, led by Rep. Patrick Ryan of New York, sent a strongly worded letter to President Donald Trump on October 1, condemning his remarks to military leaders at Marine Corps Base Quantico about using American cities as “training grounds” for U.S. troops.

The letter, signed by 15 military veterans and 10 additional Democratic lawmakers, directly challenges Trump’s Tuesday address to hundreds of generals and admirals summoned from around the world. Among the prominent signatories are Rep. Ted Lieu of California, Rep. Sara Jacobs of California, Rep. Chris Deluzio of Pennsylvania, and Rep. Derek Tran of California.

Rep. Ryan, a former U.S. Army intelligence officer whose district includes West Point Military Academy, described Trump’s remarks as crossing “a red line” and called them “so deeply un-American it may break the fabric of our democracy and the bedrock principles of an apolitical military that this country was founded on.”

“As representatives of the American people we want to be clear: our constituents are not made safer by the deployment of American troops against their fellow citizens. In fact, this is deeply antithetical to our country’s founding values of liberty and justice.”

At the hastily convened meeting on September 30, 2025, Trump told military leaders that American cities should serve as “training grounds” for troops to combat what he termed an “invasion from within.” The president specifically mentioned plans to deploy forces to Chicago, while also targeting Los Angeles, Portland, Seattle, and Washington as “very unsafe places” that needed to be “straightened out one by one.”

Trump declared to the assembled officers. He characterized the situation as “a war from within” and claimed America was “under invasion from within” by enemies who “don’t wear uniforms.”

“You looked our finest senior military leaders in the eyes and said, “This is going to be a major part for some people in this room. It’s a war too, it’s a war from within,” the letter said. “You would rather the United States military respond to your partisan whims and political agenda than adhere to the Constitution and respond to the real threats that face this nation.”

The Posse Comitatus Act of 1878 serves as a nearly 150-year-old federal law that prohibits military enforcement of domestic law. The criminal statute reflects America’s foundational belief that law enforcement should remain in civilian hands, separate from military power.

The Act specifically prevents the military from investigating local crimes, overriding local law enforcement, or compelling certain behavior. Key exceptions exist only when Congress votes to suspend the act or when the president invokes the Insurrection Act of 1807 during invasions, rebellions, or when local authorities cannot maintain order.

National Guard members under state authority are generally exempt from the Act, but the Posse Comitatus Act applies to National Guard forces when they’re “federalized” under presidential control. This was precisely the case when Trump federalized National Guard units in California despite state opposition.

“What kind of message does that send to young Patriots, called to service because they love this country with such ferocity that they want to dedicate their lives to defending it, regardless of who happens to be in power?”

The lawmakers emphasized the foundational principle that the U.S. military swears allegiance to the Constitution, not to any individual leader. “We take an oath to an individual. We take an oath to the Constitution, and we take an oath to the idea that is America, and we’re willing to die to protect it,” the letter states. 

Unlike military forces in many other nations, U.S. service members take an oath specifically to the Constitution rather than to any individual leader. The enlisted oath requires service members to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic” before pledging to “obey the orders of the President of the United States”. Similarly, commissioned officers swear to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States” with no mention of personal loyalty to the president.

This constitutional foundation means that military personnel are legally required to refuse unlawful orders that violate the Constitution, federal law, or international human rights standards.

“This nation and our Constitution demand an apolitical military. We’re teetering on the knife’s edge, and silence is not an option. It is on every Patriot, especially those who served, to stand up and stand against this blatant abuse of the world’s most lethal fighting force. We ignore this moment at the peril of ourselves, our children, and the very future of this country we love so dearly,” the letter concluded.