A large demonstration of civilians occurred in the summer of 1963 when Martin Luther King called for a Freedom March. One of the missions of The Old Guard (TOG) is to protect the D.C. area. In preparation for the event, the first battalion received riot control training with fixed chrome bayonets on M1 rifles and tear gas. Our NCOs and armorers had control of ammo and gas. As we sat ready to move out in duece-and-a-half trucks strung with chicken wire, our officers went from truck to truck telling us we may have to kill some Americans today, to remember our training and follow orders. There was no doubt that we would follow orders though we wondered how ~600 of us were going to control several hundred thousand angry Americans. That's what soldiers do - FOLLOW ORDERS. That's what soldiers do today too.
Don’t get me wrong, Riot control is a long standing mission of the National Guard in the States and the Old Guard in DC. Also, Soldiers will put down rebellion (as was the case in the bonus marchers). The bonus marchers were evicted after 3 months of “Occupy Washington” style of protests that included attempts to coerce the Congress through violent confrontation. — The film here has a very left leaning agenda. Listen to how it talks about the need for a “new system” at the end. — I recall Patton had a very low opinion of them. He believed the marchers betrayed their status and were negligent in their demanding anything for their service.
I recognize the very complicated situation we have today. I, like many others, have no faith in the current administration to do the right thing with regard to the Constitution. But at the same time, having worked in the Federal Emergency Response Process while at the Pentagon, to include the response to the 9/11/2001 attacks, I responded a “truther” type argument which advocated firing on the troops for simply being present. THAT IS WRONG.
There is an appropriate role for the military in assisting Civil Authorities. That role is governed by Posse Comitatus and Constitutional restraints. I constantly worry about those lines being crossed by this government. But there are too many here arguing that any use of Federal Troops is somehow a call for armed confrontation by any one who owns a gun. Such arguments will get a lot of innocent people killed.