'The program got hijacked': Vets revolt over DeSantis' 'militaristic' State Guard

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has sought to recreate the Florida State Guard, a World War II-era volunteer force intended to supplement the state's National Guard for non-military missions like emergencies and natural disasters.

But according to the Miami Herald, droves of veterans who were brought in for training quickly quit — because they realized they were being given purely military training, for a force that looked like it would have a military mission.

"Over 30 days in June, teenagers out of high school and retired military veterans came to Camp Blanding, the National Guard base near Jacksonville. Many were told they would volunteer for a revived State Guard with a non-military mission: help Floridians in times of need or disaster," reported Lawrence Mower, Emma Rose Brown, and Ana Ceballos. However, when they arrived, "the state’s National Guard trained the volunteers for combat. Khakis and polos were replaced by camouflaged uniforms. Volunteers assured they could keep their facial hair were ordered to shave. And they were drilled onhow to rappel with ropes, navigate through the woods and respond to incidents under military command."

This comes after experts previously raised alarms that DeSantis could effectively be creating his own private army. The legislature disregarded those fears, giving DeSantis 400 volunteers and a $10 million budget for his project.

According to the report, the State Guard has blown through two leaders in eight months as even higher-ups question the mission, fearing that DeSantis is creating a private force he can use to put down riots and conduct law enforcement activity. “The program got hijacked and turned into something that we were trying to stay away from: a militia,” said retired 20-year Navy veteran Brian Newhouse, who previously led one of the State Guard's divisions and filed a number of grievances including that the State Guard mandated training on Sundays, with no time off for church attendance.

Furthermore, said the report, "one volunteer, a disabled retired Marine Corps captain, called the local sheriff’s office to report he was battered by Florida National Guard instructors when they forcibly shoved him into a van after he questioned the program and its leadership."

Notably, the report continued, while the State Guard training had the visual trappings of military boot camp, it wasn't nearly as rigorous; people were not tested on what they learned, were not given written training materials, and were not given medical exams. And some veterans at the camp "found themselves being barked at by National Guard members who were much younger — and had much less experience."

All of this comes as DeSantis is facing broad criticism of his policies as governor, and struggles with his lagging presidential campaign.