WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The deployment of thousands of National Guard troops in response to protests on the streets of Washington, endorsed by President Donald Trump and much criticized by the city’s mayor, cost the federal government $2.6 million per day at its peak, U.S. officials told Reuters.
FILE PHOTO: A woman holds a placard as law enforcement officers stand guard during a protest against racial inequality in the aftermath of the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd, in Washington, U.S., June 6, 2020. REUTERS/Erin Scott/File Photo
A Reuters analysis of National Guard data showed that over the course of a week starting June 1, the deployments cost about $14.5 million.
At the peak, about 1,200 D.C. National Guard troops and 3,900 from other states were sent to the capital to back law enforcement during demonstrations that erupted over the death of George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man who died in Minneapolis police custody after being pinned beneath a white officer’s knee for nearly nine minutes.
Blazes erupted near the White House on May 31 as protests flared