Controversial Jade Helm military exercise opens in Texas

Doug Stanglin, USA TODAY and Kyle Jahner, Army Times | USA TODAY

Operation Jade Helm 15, the summer-long U.S. military training exercise in the Southwest that has stirred conspiracy theories of imminent martial law, kicked off Wednesday in Texas.

The operation, involving 1,200 servicemembers, including Special Forces from all four branches, Marine expeditionary forces and the 82nd Airborne Division, is being conducted largely on private property.

The overall exercise will take place across Texas, Arizona, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Utah and New Mexico.

The conspiracy theories began emerging in March and burst out publicly at local gatherings of the Bastrop County Commissioners court, where U.S. officials were bombarded with questions about the true purpose of the operation.

Fringe websites quickly suggested the operation was designed to lay the groundwork for martial law, a federal takeover of Texas — even the wholesale confiscation of guns.

Among the variations of the theory is that concentration camps were being set up at mysteriously closed Walmart stores. Blue Bell ice cream trucks allegedly traveling near military vehicles were also suspected to be mobile morgues.

In March, TV and radio commentator Alex Jones fed some of the conspiracy anxiety by posting an item on his website, Infowars, under the headline "feds preparing to invade Texas" based on an unclassified Army document describing Operation Jade Helm.

In a recent posting, Jones denied that he had said the exercises were part of a martial law takeover.

Instead, Jones says he is on the offense "aware of what is going on, aware this is part of the conditioning, long-term program of federalization."

As the clamor increased, Gov. Gregg Abbott weighed in, tapping the Texas State Guard, which is normally used in emergencies or for ceremonial duty, to monitor Operation Jade Helm 15 to reassure Texans that "their safety, constitutional rights, private property rights and civil liberties will not be infringed."

About four to five members of the Texas State Guard will act as a liaison for citizens and coordinate with the Army from Camp Mabry, headquarters of Texas Military Forces, according to the governor's office.

The governor's office also said the state should have no reason to worry or distrust the military and said most communications between the Guard and constituents have dealt with simple logistics.

On the eve of Jade Helm, Lt. Col. Mark Lastoria, spokesman for the U.S. Army Special Operations Command, dismissed the conspiracies and suggested opposition to the exercises has waned.

"This overall training exercise is designed to ensure that Army special operations forces are trained, equipped and organized to meet future threats," Lastoria told the Army Times. "Even a lot of the journalists in Texas have said a lot of the controversy has died down."

The operation, however, has spawned a citizen watchdog group, called Counter Jade Helm, that is mobilizing the public to keep an eye on the exercises.

CJH describes itself as a "training exercise for the people" in which citizens "will participate in an unofficial fashion to practice counter-insurgency, organizational and intelligence gathering and reporting skills."

"CJH is not about conspiracy theories," the group's website reads. "This exercise is not about the what-ifs of our government."

Eric Johnston, a 51-year-old retired firefighter and sheriff's deputy who lives in Kerrville, Texas, is a CJH surveillance team leader in Texas who was out on the highways on Wednesday.

"If a team member sees two Humvees full of soldiers driving through town, they're going to follow them," Johnston told the Houston Chronicle. "And they're going to radio back their ultimate location."

Journalists are not permitted to embed in the operation. Lastoria cited "the scope and scale and complex nature of the training exercise," which he said was not uncommon among training exercises.

"We look at all request for media visibility, and grant when and where possible. In this case it just wasn't possible," Lastoria said. "We have to take a balance of communication with the public and preserving operation security as well."