Final answer:
President Eisenhower sent federal troops to Little Rock, Arkansas, to enforce the Supreme Court's desegregation order after Governor Faubus used the Arkansas National Guard to prevent the Little Rock Nine from attending Central High School. Eisenhower highlighted his 'inescapable' responsibility to uphold federal courts and enforce federal law.
Step-by-step explanation:
The reason President Eisenhower gave for sending federal troops into Arkansas to protect the Little Rock Nine was to enforce the Supreme Court's order that outlawed racial segregation in public schools. After Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus utilized the Arkansas National Guard to prevent the nine African American students from attending Central High School, this prompted a constitutional crisis. Eisenhower stepped in to assert the authority of the federal government, stating, "Whenever normal agencies prove inadequate to the task and it becomes necessary for the executive branch of the federal government to use its powers and authority to uphold federal courts, the president's responsibility is inescapable."
Eisenhower's decisive action included federalizing the Arkansas National Guard, taking them away from Governor Faubus's control, and deploying the 101st Airborne Division to ensure that the federal court's mandate for desegregation was upheld and the Little Rock Nine could attend school safely.