Who Was Behind the Largest Mass Arrest in U.S. History?
Who Was Behind the Largest Mass Arrest in U.S. History?
Washington’s police chief took the blame. But Nixon was behind the decision.
?quality=90&auto=webp
Military troops in May 1971 guarded thousands of Mayday antiwar protesters detained on the practice field of Washington’s N.F.L. team. Soldiers also fended off demonstrators at bridges and federal buildings in the city.Credit...Associated Press
By Lawrence Roberts
Mr. Roberts is the author of “Mayday 1971: A White House at War, a Revolt in the Streets, and the Untold History of America’s Biggest Mass Arrest.”
Aug. 6, 2020
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/06/opinion/nixon-trump-protests-military.html?action=click&algo=bandit-story&block=more_in_recirc&fellback=false&imp_id=245181235&impression_id=9cd204a0-db1f-11ea-9be9-13a0b1904620&index=0&pgtype=Article®ion=footer&req_id=544706881&surface=more-in-opinion
<snip>
As the Mayday action unfolded on May 3, twin-engine Chinook helicopters roared down by the Washington Monument, disgorging troops from the 82nd Airborne Division, who trotted off to the Capitol and other hot spots. In all, the administration summoned 10,000 soldiers and Marines, turning “the center of the nation’s capital into an armed camp with thousands of troops lining the bridges and principal streets, helicopters whirring overhead and helmeted police charging crowds of civilians with nightsticks and tear gas,” according to a New York Times report. More than 12,000 people were swept up over three days, the largest mass arrest in U.S. history.
<snip>
Mr. Kleindienst overrode their concerns with an opinion from the Justice Department’s legal counsel, William Rehnquist, who had been his protégé in their home state, Arizona. Mr. Rehnquist said the act didn’t apply; the president had “inherent constitutional authority” to use troops “to protect the functioning of the government.” (Mr. Rehnquist would be named to the Supreme Court by Mr. Nixon later that year and elevated to chief justice under President Ronald Reagan.)
Mr. Kleindienst faced another obstacle. David Packard, the deputy secretary of defense, pointed out the procedures a president should follow, under the Insurrection Act, in calling forth the military: a formal order that demonstrators disperse and, if they don’t, an executive order to send in troops. Mr. Nixon’s predecessor, Lyndon Johnson, had done this during the riots in Washington in 1968 after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. The White House, however, wanted to keep its involvement under wraps. According to Mr. Haldeman’s diary, Mr. Nixon let Mr. Packard know he wanted troops sent without any public presidential action. The White House spread the fake news that city officials had requested the military help.
<snip>
As criticism mounted that the dragnet was unconstitutional (courts ultimately agreed, awarding detainees millions in damages), Mr. Nixon’s involvement was suspected. The White House denied it. Aides instructed the police chief, Mr. Wilson, to take the heat. “I wish to emphasize the fact that I made all tactical decisions relating to the recent disorders,” he said in a public statement. “I took these steps because I felt they were necessary to protect the safety of law-abiding citizens and to maintain order in the city.” The tapes show Mr. Nixon’s men were delighted.
<snip>
Lawrence Roberts, a former editor at ProPublica and The Washington Post, is the author of “Mayday 1971: A White House at War, a Revolt in the Streets, and the Untold History of America’s Biggest Mass Arrest.”
= new reply since forum marked as read
I knew I wouldn't be deployed because 1, the Army deployed tear gas during the Vietnam Moratorium and and closed a hospital and two office buildings and 2. I was deploying micro-pulverized powder that has a 10 year life span and can only be remediated by covering it with heavy oil (basically asphalt).
The green was definitely NOT surplus at the time.
I didn't think they'd draft a guy with one arm longer than the other and I held on to the front porch as long as I could . . . 
I will say this tho, those MFers at Fort Dietrich where I got my cert were some really strange dudes.
