(Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump has told U.S. troops he was prepared to send “more than the National Guard” into U.S. cities if needed, in the latest demonstration of his willingness to escalate a confrontation with Democratic-led local governments which oppose the deployments.

Trump delivered his remarks on Tuesday aboard the George Washington aircraft carrier, which was docked at the Yokosuka naval base near Tokyo. His speech, which occasionally touched on partisan issues, was interrupted by applause and cheers from the troops several times.

“We have cities that are troubled … and we’re sending in our National Guard. And if we need more than the National Guard, we’ll send more than the National Guard because we’re going to have safe cities,” Trump said.

Trump since June has dep

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