SC Public Interest Foundation v. McMaster

Twice in 2025, at the request of President Donald Trump, South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster ordered hundreds of South Carolina National Guard members to deploy to Washington D.C. While the president claimed the purpose of his request was “to address the epidemic of crime in our Nation’s capital,” the facts did not bear that out. Violent crime was at a 30-year low in the District of Columbia.

During the second deployment, which was launched in December 2025 and estimated to last 90 days, Navy veteran James Weninger and the South Carolina Public Interest Foundation (SCPIF) filed a lawsuit asking the State Supreme Court to stop the deployment and bring the troops home from this blatant act of political theater.

The ACLU of South Carolina and Democracy Forward represent the plaintiffs in this case.

The South Carolina National Guard is meant to serve South Carolinians during emergencies. Contrary to this mission, the first deployment took place during the peak of hurricane season, a time of year when National Guard members are frequently needed for rescue and recovery efforts in their home state. The second deployment took place through the winter holidays, needlessly taking National Guard members away from their families.

While the president has the authority to request National Guard troops to the nation’s capital, South Carolina law (Section 25-1-1840) only allows the governor to deploy the Guard under certain conditions, specifically:

in the event of (a) war, insurrection, rebellion, invasion, tumult, riot or a mob, (b) a body of men acting together by force with intent to commit a felony, to offer violence to persons or property or by force and violence to break and resist the laws of this State or of the United States, (c) in case of the imminent danger of the occurrence of any such events, or (d) in the event of public disaster.

None of these conditions existed at the time of either deployment. The governor’s deployment orders violated South Carolina law. These deployments sent National Guard members to police the streets in a place whose residents and leaders did not request their help.

We filed a complaint and petition for original jurisdiction in the South Carolina Supreme Court on Jan. 7, 2026. The plaintiffs are requesting expedited consideration.

Governor Henry McMaster needs to hear from South Carolinians who oppose his abuse of the National Guard for a political stunt. You can use this form to contact the governor with your concerns: