TNR reports that the “administration seems to be supercharging immigration ‘invasion’ agitprop to manufacture a sense of national trauma similar to the one that arose after the September 11 attacks. That led to another type of ‘war on terror’ hyper-militarization at home (as well as abroad). The administration seems determined to outdo that—this time against the new internal enemy.”

Joseph Nunn, counsel for the Liberty and National Security Program at the Brennan Center told Sargent, “Normalizing routine military support to law enforcement could create a kind of domestic ‘forever war,’ but one that is uniquely dangerous.”

The memo was written by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s brother, Philip Hegseth, who works for the Department of Homeland Security as a liaison officer to the Pentagon, as well as a senior advisor to Secretary Kristi Noem.

Philip Hegseth’s memo included an itinerary, and attendees for a July 21 meeting, “including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and several of his top advisers, Joint Chiefs Chairman Dan Caine, and NORTHCOM Commander Gregory Guillot. Staff include Phil Hegseth and acting ICE Commissioner Todd Lyons.”

The Daily Beast, reporting on the Hegseth memo, called it a “secret plan for years of troops on U.S. streets.”

Prominent attorney George Conway commented on Sargent’s reporting on social media, writing: “And here we go.” He said the plan seems to be “to turn the nation into a military police state. They’re telling each other to be careful what they write down, but they’ve already written down too much.”

“The point of calling illegal immigration an ‘invasion’ is to justify using the military domestically,” noted Cato Institute vice president Alex Nowrasteh.

“Things are going from bad to worse at terrifying speed,” wrote Matt Bennett, co-founder of the moderate think tank Third Way, calling the report “very alarming,”

“Fake the invasion to seize unprecedented power,” added the Cato Institute’s David J. Bier.