The Changing of the Guard: The National Guard's Role in American Politics
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John C. Griswold
This paper examines an aspect of United States armed forces that has been under-studied in the discipline of political science over the past three decades: the National Guard. The Guard’s roles, responsibilities, and relationships with the states and the federal government have changed significantly since the end of the Vietnam War, from “weekend warriors” to an integral component of the national security enterprise. The paper begins by defining the Guard and its constitutional role in American national security, and then evaluates the state of the political science literature on the National Guard. It illustrates changes to the Guard using three recent cases: the War on Drugs, the War on Terror, and Hurricane Katrina. Finally, it explores potential implications of these cases and other recent events on the future role of the National Guard in American politics.
©2012 Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co. KG, Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Introduction
- The Military in American Politics
- Article
- Civilian Control and the Constitution
- Scholarship on Strategic Studies and Civil-Military Relations: Is American Politics the Neglected 'Poor Relation'?
- The Changing of the Guard: The National Guard's Role in American Politics
- Political Indecision and Military Muddle in an Age of Grand Strategy
- A Political History of the All-Volunteer Army
- The Pendulum Swings: The Fall and Return of ROTC to Elite Campuses, and Why It Matters
- The Politics of Military Bases
- Presidents and Military Command
- Joining Forces: Bridging the Civil-Military Divide
- Review
- Review of Our Army: Soldiers, Politics, and American Civil-Military Relations
- Review of Partisan Balance: Why Political Parties Don't Kill the U.S. Constitutional System
- Review of Filibustering: A Political History of Obstruction in the House and Senate
Articles in the same Issue
- Introduction
- The Military in American Politics
- Article
- Civilian Control and the Constitution
- Scholarship on Strategic Studies and Civil-Military Relations: Is American Politics the Neglected 'Poor Relation'?
- The Changing of the Guard: The National Guard's Role in American Politics
- Political Indecision and Military Muddle in an Age of Grand Strategy
- A Political History of the All-Volunteer Army
- The Pendulum Swings: The Fall and Return of ROTC to Elite Campuses, and Why It Matters
- The Politics of Military Bases
- Presidents and Military Command
- Joining Forces: Bridging the Civil-Military Divide
- Review
- Review of Our Army: Soldiers, Politics, and American Civil-Military Relations
- Review of Partisan Balance: Why Political Parties Don't Kill the U.S. Constitutional System
- Review of Filibustering: A Political History of Obstruction in the House and Senate
