[funfan]

What does the MP do?

[Salvavida]

MPs have two roles, and they get assigned to one of two types of units: (1) assigned to a base to enforce base laws much like a regular police force, and (2) MPs assigned to a tactical unit to provide MP support for the operating forces. In both cases the Uniform Code of Military Justice is in view.

Whereas MPs are accustomed to making arrests, an infantry unit doesn't. Infantry unit troops are not interested in talking. They dispense violence. There is no sense calling up troops to make arrests. That is what police, sheriffs, and state police are for, and to a lesser degree, the National Guard.

Using federal troops to do this job sets a bad precedent.