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Even scarier than a Cat 6

With its helicopters, airplanes, boats, trucks and thousands of employees who follow orders, the military can provide invaluable help during natural disasters. But in a free country, the military must always remain under civilian authority, not in charge.

That’s one of the bedrock principles of our Constitution and our freedoms.

The armed forces’ responsibility is to protect us from foreign enemies, not from homegrown criminals – and certainly not from criminals as defined by some colonel or general.

Surely most members of Congress understand that and surely most will reject President Bush’s suggestion that the Pentagon be put in charge after bad natural disasters.

For that to happen, Congress would have to repeal a 1878 law that forbids the military from engaging in domestic law enforcement without Congressional approval.

It’s doubtful that even many military officers would want such a responsibility. They are trained to fight, not to oversee huge bureaucracies charged with rescuing people and then feeding and sheltering them.

National Guard troops are traditionally sent to help local law-enforcement officers maintain order after natural disasters. But troops on such duty are under the command of state governors, not the secretary of defense.

Mr. Bush’s frustration with the failures of civilian authorities is understandable and widely shared.

But the appropriate response is to put qualified civilians in charge and give them the resources to make and carry out effective plans.
It is not to ask the Pentagon to try to take on a civilian responsibility – and in the process, get Americans accustomed to the idea that the way to solve domestic problems is with uniformed people carrying guns.