Is the National Guard a Viable Solution for Michigan's Corrections Officer Shortage?

Last week, just a few days before the attempted assassination of Trump, the Michigan Corrections Officer's union made a remarkable request of Governor Whitmer. They requested that she authorize the National Guard to come into prison to work as corrections officers. 

After several years of crisis level staff shortages, and a terribly ineffective drive to hire more officers, the officer shortage remains the same or worse. This long-term shortage has stretched the staff thin, necessitating ridiculous amounts of mandated overtime. 

I honestly don't know how anyone still works here. They can't possibly have any personal life. Every day, it seems, I see dozens of officers working double shifts, and that's at a prison where the shortage isn't as bad as at other prisons. 

When I heard of the request for National Guard troops, I recognized it as a double bind for the governor, whose name has been near the top of the list for potential Democratic contenders for President (or Vice President) of the United States. If she approved the request, it would confirm that she could not resolve a crisis in her state. If she denied the request, it would look like she doesn't care to resolve the crisis. 

Very shortly after the request, Governor Whitmer denied the request. It's status quo as it has been for the last three plus years. Of course, the officers are angry and frustrated about the shortage. But they are also upset that their pensions were taken several years back. 

If Whitmer had approved the request for National Guard troops, I don't think that would have been a good thing, in the short term, for Michigan prisoners. In the long term, it might have led to tangible reforms, including, perhaps, time cuts or the passage of a good time bill. But in the short term, it would have likely led to increased lock downs and loss of privileges.

Instead, we're likely to experience more of the same, including recreation time cancelations and lock downs. 

It would not surprise me to see a continued exodus of officers from the MDOC. This demand on their time, and the Governor's refusal to make any moves to lesson the strain, cannot be sustained much longer. What is it going to take to see some tangible changes that will lesson the strain on resources? I don't know, but the likely outcomes concern me, and they should concern every Michigan citizen.