The National Guard's Dueling Banjos

The uniqueness and confusion surrounding the National Guard is duality. The National Guard is guaranteed by the US Constitution, and it is shared and separated as a military organization among the states and the federal government under separate statutory laws. Therefore, the National Guard functions as a state organization and a federal force. Yet, the two statuses are inseparable; members join both at the same time. The National Guard is state-based and state organized but mostly funded by the federal government, trained to federal standards and has a federal mission. Governors supposedly control their state militias, yet, history demonstrates otherwise. Through the evolution of statutory and case law, the federal government has eroded state control despite constitutional guarantees.