A separate official told CNN any units from Fort Drum would be drawn from the 10th Mountain Division.
Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley “have personally spoken with Governor Walz twice in the last 24-hours and expressed the department’s readiness to provide support to local and state authorities as requested,” Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Rath Hoffman said in a statement Saturday.
Hoffman said “at this time there is no request by the Governor of Minnesota for Title 10 forces to support the Minnesota National Guard or state law enforcement.”
“As a prudent planning measure, the department has directed U.S. Northern Command to increase the alert status of several units should they be requested by the Governor to support Minnesota authorities. These are units that normally maintain a 48-hour recall to support state civil authorities for several contingencies (like natural disasters) and are now on 4-hour status,” he added.
During a news conference Saturday in Minneapolis, Walz told reporters he spoke with Esper and Milley about the possibility of deploying military police to areas where protests are happening.
“I think it’s really important again for folks to think about the uniqueness of our nation, of protecting civil liberties, is to make sure that civilians control the military and — especially inside the United States — is carried out by civilians, by citizen-soldiers, by National Guard,” Walz said.
“That’s why we’re accessing and they’re helping us access all these assets through the National Guard and our surrounding states,” he added.
“They’re not talking about mobilizing the entire United States Army,” Walz said, adding that the number of troops would likely be around several hundred.
He also made the case that it would be “easier” and “quicker” to rely on state partners, rather than federal troops.
Military police could most likely be used for crowd control, but under federal law would not engage in any law enforcement or lethal activity other than self-defense.
A defense official emphasized to CNN “unequivocally” that President Donald Trump “did not direct” options for invoking the Insurrection Act, which could pave the way for sending troops even if a governor does not ask for them.