The President is putting America's armed forces in a bind

Turning soldiers into cops was once a last resort. How far might he go?

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The technical term for it is a military presence patrol. The nontechnical term is a political stunt.

Since August, National Guard troops have been ambling around landmarks in Washington, DC, including the Mall and the main train station. Mr Donald Trump ostensibly sent them to fight crime. In reality, they are not making arrests and these are some of the safer parts of America’s capital. So they are collecting rubbish and spreading mulch in city parks. Tourists ask them for selfies; some locals tell them to get lost.

Soon Mr Trump will deploy more troops in Memphis and possibly New Orleans.

Thirty years ago, Mr Charles Dunlap, then an air force lawyer, warned of the increasing encroachment of the armed forces into civilian life, which he called a “subtle drift towards an uncertain destination”.

Under Mr Trump, this is less a drift than a lurch.

The President loves pageantry, hardware and men in uniform. He also thinks putting soldiers to work as cops in Democratic-run cities is good politics. Residents may resent it in DC and Los Angeles, where he sent troops in June to quell immigration-related protests. But it plays well on Fox News.