The Memo That Could Put Troops at Your Polling Place

The Memo That Could Put Troops at Your Polling Place

Markwayne Mullin, Secretary of Homeland Security, the department with a 'Polling Place Policy,' according to a federal lawsuit.

The Memo That Could Put Troops at Your Polling Place

The FBI Director was asked a yes-or-no question about agents at the polls. He couldn’t say no.

The Jack Hopkins Now Newsletter #1,038: Tuesday, September 29th, 2026

Let me tell you about a question that should have been easy.

It’s the kind of question you ask in a job interview just to make sure the person across the table isn’t crazy. The kind with only one right answer.

A few weeks ago, a United States Senator asked it of the Director of the FBI.

And the Director of the FBI…couldn’t give the right answer.

The Question

Kash Patel was testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Senators Amy Klobuchar and Richard Blumenthal pressed him on whether he’d rule out sending agents to the polls, and he declined to rule it out.

Blumenthal asked him point-blank whether deploying FBI agents to polling places on Election Day would be against the law.

Patel’s answer:

“I don’t know that we can’t legally do it.”

Read that again.

He didn’t say “Of course not.” He didn’t say “That will never happen on my watch.” The man in charge of the most powerful law enforcement agency in the country looked at the United States Senate and said he wasn’t sure it was illegal.

Blumenthal told him he was dissatisfied that Patel wouldn’t give a clear, unambiguous commitment to keep the FBI out of election interference.

Neither am I. And I don’t think you should be either.

Because that answer…didn’t come out of nowhere.

The Memo

A government watchdog called American Oversight obtained a memo the Department of Homeland Security sent to state attorneys general.

It lays out a legal theory for getting around the Posse Comitatus Act…the law that keeps the military out of domestic law enforcement.

Here’s the theory, in plain English.

If National Guard troops are activated under Title 10 and deputized by the Homeland Security Secretary, the memo argues…using them wouldn’t run afoul of Posse Comitatus. It describes circumstances that would allow Guard troops…to do immigration policing outside their own states.

Now…put that next to what else is happening.

DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said on Fox News that his department is investigating more than 300,000 cases of suspected non-citizen voting.

And…according to one of the lawsuits I’ll tell you about in a minute…Mullin has publicly said the administration has a policy authorizing ICE officers to go to polling places to serve warrants and detain people…and DHS has adopted a “Polling Place Policy” directing agents in immigration enforcement at the polls.

A legal theory for using troops. A claim of 300,000 suspect voters. A written policy for agents at polling places.

You don’t need me to connect those dots. I know you don’t.

“It’s Against the Law” Only Works If Someone Enforces It

You might be thinking: surely this is illegal.

It is. Federal law bars federal forces from polling places…because their presence can intimidate voters and scare them away from casting a ballot.

But…laws are only as strong as the people sworn to uphold them.

And…the people telling us they aren’t sure where the line is…are the same ones who’d be deciding whether to cross it.

Consider this. Back in January, Trump told The New York Times he regrets not directing the National Guard to seize voting machines after he lost in 2020.

And..in June…the Justice Department pulled its 281-page manual on prosecuting election offenses off its website…with no notice and no explanation.

Mary McCord, a former acting assistant attorney general for national security…says she’s been studying this for a year and the administration has said nothing to calm fears that voters could be intimidated…or that U.S. citizens trying to vote could be unlawfully stopped and detained.

Why the Guardrails May Not Hold

Here’s the part most people haven’t heard.

Inside the military, there’s a safety valve. The Judge Advocates General…the JAGs…are the military’s lawyers. When an order looks illegal…they’re the ones who say so.

Eugene Fidell spent years as a JAG officer in the Coast Guard. He now teaches military justice at Yale Law School. He’s no activist. He’s a military lawyer’s lawyer.

Fidell says that if an order went out to send federal troops to the polls…a JAG would be duty-bound to say it can’t be done…unless the president declares an insurrection. And…if a president did that? Fidell warned the country would be watching a civil war fought in the courts.

Now…here’s what should chill you.

In February 2025, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth fired two of the military’s top JAG officers, the Army’s Lt. Gen. Joseph Berger III and the Navy’s Lt. Gen. Charles Plummer. He gave no reason.

The people whose job is to say “you can’t do that”…are exactly the people who got removed.

The Good News

I won’t leave you there. Because the people on our side haven’t been sleeping.

In just the last two weeks, two lawsuits have been filed to stop the administration from sending federal officers to the polls.

One comes from a coalition that includes LULAC and Common Cause. The other, from the NAACP and its allies…argues the plans violate the Voting Rights Act by intimidating voters…especially minority voters.

And…Fidell himself says the courts are a real protection. He points to civil society…state attorneys general…and local authorities who are ready to run to court the moment trouble starts…and to a corps of lawyers who drafted the legal papers long ago.

The lawyers are ready. The question is whether you are.

So What Can You Do?

Three things. All of them in your hands.

1. Know your rights before you walk in.

Federal law makes it a crime to intimidate voters. If you see agents or troops at your polling place…or anyone tries to stop you from voting…call the nonpartisan Election Protection hotline at 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683). Put it in your phone today. And remember: if you’re in line when the polls close, stay in line.

2. Vote early if your state allows it.

Every ballot cast before Election Day is one nobody can intimidate on Election Day. Check your state’s early voting dates this week, then make a plan.

3. Demand the promise Patel wouldn’t make.

Call your Senators and your Representative. Ask one question: Will you publicly commit that no federal agents or troops will be sent to polling places? Get the answer on the record. If they won’t say it…that tells you something too.

The Bottom Line

Nobody has put troops at a polling place.

Not yet. The lawsuits are real…and the courts may well shut this down.

But…when the Director of the FBI isn’t sure it’s illegal…and the Secretary of Homeland Security has a policy for it…and the lawyers who would object have been fired…”it could never happen here” stops being a reason to relax.

The best defense is still the oldest one. Show up. In numbers too big to scare.

Q & A

Q: Isn’t it already illegal to have troops at the polls?

Yes. Federal law bars federal forces from polling places. The concern is that the administration is building legal arguments to get around that.

Q: What exactly did the DHS memo say?

It argues that National Guard troops activated under Title 10 and deputized by the DHS Secretary could perform immigration enforcement without violating the Posse Comitatus Act.

Q: Did Patel say he would send agents to the polls?

No. He said he wasn’t sure it was illegal…and that agents would be housed in field offices for election security. He would not rule it out.

Q: Can the courts stop this?

Two lawsuits are already underway…and legal experts say lawyers are prepared to go to court immediately if agents appear at the polls.

Q: What should I do if I see agents at my polling place?

Stay calm…vote if you can…and call 866-OUR-VOTE to report it.

#HoldFast

Back soon.

-Jack

Jack Hopkins

Remember, Jack's got your back.

P.S. Save 866-OUR-VOTE in your phone right now. Then…send this to one person who votes at the same polling place you do. Neighbors watching out for neighbors…is how this gets stopped.

P.P.S. I have a favor to ask. For at least from now until the election, if you think what you’ve read found you better imformed and knowing exactly what to do, please like, comment, and restack.

These signal to Substack that my post is worth showing more widely…including in the Substack app and Notes, where people discover new writers. Restacks put my article in front of your own followers…and when you comments, it creates a conversation that benefits everyone, including me, and draws other readers in. I would be ever so grateful.

Sources

• Legal experts warn of potential for federal agents at polling places (UPI, September 24, 2026). Covers the DHS memo, Patel’s testimony, Mullin’s comments, Trump’s New York Times remarks, the removed DOJ manual, Mary McCord, Eugene Fidell, the JAG firings, and both lawsuits.

• Kash Patel’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing (UPI, September 15, 2026). Coverage of the testimony where Patel was questioned about agents at the polls.

• American Oversight is the watchdog group that obtained the DHS memo through a Freedom of Information Act request.

• Election Protection / 866-OUR-VOTE is the nonpartisan voter hotline and know-your-rights resource.