BATON ROUGE, LA – Senator Royce Duplessis sounded the alarm Friday, warning that Louisiana has been left “dangerously unprepared” after Governor Jeff Landry deployed a staggering 135 National Guardsmen to Washington, D.C.
The move, which reduced the Guard’s available force from 11,500 to a mere 11,365, was described by Duplessis as a reckless gamble during hurricane season. “This is catastrophic,” he said. “How can we possibly protect Louisiana with only 99% of our troops at home?”
Critics, however, noted that hurricanes typically give four to six days’ notice and that the 135 soldiers are just over a two-hour flight away. “It’s not like we shipped them to Mars,” one resident quipped. They also pointed out that the word National is in “National Guard” precisely because they can be deployed beyond Louisiana when needed.
The Governor’s office reassured the public that Louisiana remains “fully capable” of handling emergencies with the remaining 11,365 troops. “If disaster strikes, those 135 soldiers will be back before Duplessis actually reads this press release his intern posted and fires them for making him look like an idiot,” a spokesperson added.
“Frankly, if 11,365 soldiers can’t handle it, I’m not sure those extra 135 are the magic number,” one Baton Rouge shop owner told The Sadvocate.
