Texas
Texas calls back National Guard members after some heavyset troops face viral mockery
After a viral photo sparked mockery online, the Texas Military Department benched some National Guard troops who had been tapped last week for President Donald Trump’s authoritarian crackdown in Chicago.
Trump’s deployment of 200 Texas National Guard members to Chicago is basically a made-for-TV intimidation tactic to strike fear in his critics, particularly liberals, whom he’s vowed to vanquish using their own government’s military. A federal judge attested to this last week, when she ruled there was no “danger of rebellion” in Chicago and barred Trump from deploying troops for two weeks.
And now it looks like this stunt is due for a recast.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said he was sending the “elite Texas National Guard” to Chicago, but over the weekend the Texas Military Department confirmed to the defense-focused news outlet Task & Purpose that some guard members were called home for what it described vaguely as noncompliance. The personnel change came after a now-viral ABC News photo, posted to X, showed several heavyset Guard troops arriving in Chicago, which elicited insults mocking their weight and appearance. Some also noted they appeared at odds with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s recent denunciation of “fat troops.”
Per Task & Purpose:
‘In less than 24 hours, Texas National Guardsmen mobilized for the Federal Protection Mission,’ a spokesperson reportedly told Task and Purpose over the weekend. ‘The speed of the response necessitated a concurrent validation process, during which we identified a small group of service members who were not in compliance and have been replaced.’
The Texas Military Department didn’t specify which standards the dismissed troops failed to meet (Task & Purpose asked about “being evaluated for height and weight standards”) or how many were relieved of duty, but Hegseth approvingly reposted a screenshot of Task & Purpose’s article, which quotes the National Guard Bureau as saying troops are “required to meet service-specific height, weight, and physical fitness standards at all times.”
“Standards are back,” Hegseth wrote.
It’s hard to imagine that anyone in the National Guard legitimately lacks the fitness level to meet the seemingly low demands required for a publicity stunt. Standing around ostensibly to ward off a nonexistent rebellion doesn’t strike me as grueling activity.
It’s also worth noting there’s no evidence that Hegseth’s new military standards, including new fitness guidelines, will improve military readiness — but ample reason to believe they will undercut the military’s ability to recruit and keep capable members.
But more than anything, the Trump administration seems to want the troops it deploys to American streets to project a certain air of intimidation — one that heavyset troops don’t fit.
No. 1 seed Texas (51-12, 16-8 in SEC play) and No. 3 seed Texas Tech (61-8, 21-3 in the Big 12) begin their three-game series at 8 p.m. ET Wednesday in Oklahoma City. Each
Texas
Brazoria County deputy shoots, kills Texas State University student after car chase, report says
BRAZORIA COUNTY, Texas – A Texas State University student was shot and killed by a Brazoria County Sheriff’s deputy early Monday morning after an attempted traffic stop in Lake Jackson.
The news was first reported by The University Star, Texas State’s student-run newspaper.
In a Tuesday statement to KSAT, the university identified the student as John Gabriel Mendoza Jr., 18. He was a freshman who studied management, according to the school.
“We extend our heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, classmates, and all those affected by this tragedy,” the university said in its statement.
Deputies attempted a traffic stop on a vehicle just after midnight Monday near Farm-to-Market 2004 and This Way Street in Lake Jackson, the sheriff’s office said.
The driver of the vehicle, who was identified as Mendoza by The University Star, did not stop, deputies said. The deputies then chased after the vehicle for approximately a mile into a neighborhood located in the 100 block of Indian Warrior Trail.
According to the sheriff’s office, the driver went inside a home’s garage and parked before a deputy approached the vehicle, the release said.
The deputy then pulled out his firearm and shot into the vehicle. The sheriff’s office said the gunfire struck the driver.
The University Star reported that Mendoza was the one shot. He was taken to a hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
The deputy who pulled the trigger has since been placed on administrative leave in accordance with the Brazoria County Sheriff’s Office policy.
KSAT reached out to the Lake Jackson Police Department and the Brazoria County Sheriff’s Office for more information, but neither agency has responded at this time.
The shooting investigation is being led by the Texas Rangers, according to a Brazoria County Sheriff’s Office news release.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
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