National Guard Troops to Arrive in New Orleans

The troops will join an existing wave of Border Patrol agents, months after Gov. Jeff Landry first suggested that the National Guard could help tamp down on crime in Louisiana.

About 350 National Guard troops will arrive in New Orleans before New Year’s Eve, Gov. Jeff Landry of Louisiana said on Tuesday, and they will stay through at least February.

Mr. Landry confirmed the deployment both in an appearance on Fox News Channel and on social media. Following Washington and Memphis, New Orleans would be the latest Democratic-led city to receive Guard troops after President Trump criticized it for high rates of crime.

“We know how to make cities safe, and the National Guard complements cities that are having high crime problems,” Mr. Landry said, speaking on Fox News. Sharing a clip of the appearance on social media, he added that the troops would be there to “ensure safety during the busiest season in the city.”

The announcement came just minutes after the Supreme Court refused to allow President Trump to deploy hundreds of National Guard troops in the Chicago area over the objection of Illinois officials. The president has been similarly blocked from deploying federalized Guard troops to Portland, Ore.

In the case of New Orleans, the deployment of National Guard troops was embraced by the Louisiana governor, and the Tuesday announcement came months after Mr. Landry, a Republican, first wrote to Mr. Trump asking him to sign off on sending them to the city. While Mr. Landry can dispatch the Guard without presidential input, authorization from the administration allows the federal government to help cover the expenses.

Sean Parnell, a Pentagon spokesman, confirmed in a statement that Mr. Hegseth had authorized the deployment through Feb. 28. Mr. Landry will retain control.

The troops will join Border Patrol agents who have already been in the city since early December as part of a federal crackdown on undocumented immigration. And their scheduled arrival before New Year’s Eve means they are set to be there for the one-year anniversary of the New Year’s Day terrorist attack on Bourbon Street, where a man drove a truck into a crowd and killed 14 people, and remain through the annual Carnival parades that mark the celebration of Mardi Gras.

New Orleans has long been on Mr. Trump’s radar; he floated the possibility of sending in the National Guard in early September. Mr. Landry has also suggested sending troops to other cities, including Baton Rouge, the state capital, or Shreveport, in the northwestern corner of the state, but focused only on New Orleans in his announcement Tuesday.

“Like in past years, including last year, we appreciate the support provided by our federal and state public safety partners to increase the visibility of security assets during major events,” said Helena Moreno, the mayor-elect of New Orleans, in a statement. She added that she had been assured that the deployment “comes at no cost to the City and plays an important role in strengthening public safety.

The deployment of both the National Guard and Border Patrol in New Orleans highlights how deeply the administration and Republicans have tied their concerns about crime with broader complaints about illegal immigration, particularly in Democratic-led cities. But data shows that immigrants are less likely to commit crimes than native-born Americans.

Trump administration officials have said that their focus is on arresting people who have violent criminal records or are accused of more serious offenses, especially if they are undocumented. Some conservatives have argued strict immigration enforcement could have prevented crimes committed by someone in the country illegally.

But in cities across the country, there have also been reports of arrests for more minor offenses and of U.S. citizens or people in the country legally being detained.

In New Orleans, the existing Border Patrol agents will most likely continue to execute the brunt of law enforcement actions, for which they have faced criticism for their aggressive tactics.

Federalized National Guard troops elsewhere in the country have not had the ability to arrest people or execute warrants, playing more of a supporting role to federal immigration agents. But the optics of Guard members in fatigues patrolling near downtown landmarks and tourist areas has prompted some alarm, and litigation. (Some residents and tourists have welcomed their presence, as well as the broader federal investment.)

As in other cities, including in Memphis and Los Angeles, the National Guard deployments have been framed as a way to counter high crime. In New Orleans, crime spiked in New Orleans around the coronavirus pandemic and remains high compared with other cities. But in 2024, local police reported a decrease in crime to prepandemic levels.

National Guard troops have also been dispatched to New Orleans to provide security for other reasons this year. That includes after the New Year’s Day terrorist attack and around the Super Bowl and other major events.

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