'We need to dominate the battle-space,' Defense Secretary Mark Esper told governors on a conference call with President Trump Monday
Daily Mail: Defense secretary tells governors to 'dominate the battle-space' in nation's cities as he and chairman of the joint chiefs of staff join Donald Trump on crisis call
* 'I agree we need to dominate the battle-space,' the Pentagon boss told governors on a call
* President Trump said they would look like 'jerks' and 'fools' if they didn't 'dominate' and gain control of the streets
* Esper says only 17,000 Guard troops have been deployed
* White House says 350,000 are available to be called up
Defense Secretary Mark Esper told the nation's governors they should use thousands of National Guard forces to 'dominate the battle-space' – on a call where the President Trump told them they would look like 'fools' otherwise.
Esper pressed governors on the call Monday morning to dramatically increase the use of National Guard troops on the streets, after the president scolded them, saying they would have to 'dominate or you'll look like a bunch of jerks.
'At my urging, I agree we need to dominate the battle-space,' Esper told the governors, who assembled on a conference call.
Read more ....
Update #1: Pentagon chief urges governors to 'dominate the battlespace' to end unrest as thousands of National Guard troops take to the streets in US cities -- Business Insider
Update #2: Esper encourages governors to ‘dominate the battlespace’ to put down nationwide protests -- Military Times
WNU Editor: The audio of the US secretary of defense referring to American streets as the “battle space” is below:
Here’s the audio of the US secretary of defense referring to American streets as the “battle space” pic.twitter.com/SmqynReHTC— John Hudson (@John_Hudson) June 1, 2020
Progressives and critics of President trump have a different view .... Secretary of Defense Mark Esper Gets Roasted for Saying Governors Need to ‘Dominate the Battlespace’ (Mediaite).
