President Donald Trump is deploying 2,000 California National Guard troops over the governor’s objections to Los Angeles where protests on Saturday (local time) led to clashes between immigration authorities and demonstrators.
The White House said in a statement that Trump was deploying the Guardsmen to “address the lawlessness that has been allowed to fester” in California.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, objected to the move and said in a post on X that the move from the Republican president was “purposefully inflammatory and will only escalate tensions.”
The White House’s move to dramatically ratchet up the response came as protests in Los Angeles extended into a second day where tear gas and smoke filled the air as protesters faced off with Border Patrol personnel in riot gear.
In a signal of the administration’s aggressive approach, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth threatened in a post on X to deploy the US military.
“If violence continues, active duty Marines at Camp Pendleton will also be mobilized — they are on high alert,” Hegseth said.
Trump federalised part of the California’s National Guard under what is known as Title 10 authority, which places him, not the governor, atop the chain of command, according to Newsom’s office.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement that the work the immigration authorities were doing when met with protests is “essential to halting and reversing the invasion of illegal criminals into the United States.
Police, protesters clash in violent upheaval in LA
In the wake of this violence, California’s feckless Democrat leaders have completely abdicated their responsibility to protect their citizens.”
The president’s move came shortly after he issued a threat on his social media network that said that if Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass didn’t “do their jobs,” then “the Federal Government will step in and solve the problem, RIOTS & LOOTERS, the way it should be solved!!!”
Newsom said in his statement on social media that local authorities “are able to access law enforcement assistance at a moment’s notice,” and “there is currently no unmet need.”
“This is the wrong mission and will erode public trust,” he added.
Border Patrol personnel in riot gear and gas masks stood guard outside an industrial park in the city of Paramount, deploying tear gas as bystanders and protesters gathered on medians and across the street.
Some jeered at officers while recording the events on smartphones.
“ICE out of Paramount. We see you for what you are,” a woman said through a megaphone. “You are not welcome here.”
One handheld sign read, “No Human Being is Illegal.”
Smoke rose from burning shrubbery and refuse in the street, and demonstrators kicked at a Border Patrol vehicle.
A boulevard was closed to traffic as Border Patrol agents circulated through a community where more than 80 per cent of residents identify themselves as Latino.
The California Highway Patrol said Newsom had directed the agency to deploy additional officers to “maintain public safety” on state highways and roads and the agency will work to “keep the peace.”
In 2020, Trump asked governors of several states to deploy their National Guard troops to Washington, DC, to quell protests that arose after George Floyd was killed by Minneapolis police officers.
Many of the governors agreed, sending troops to the federal district.
At the time, Trump also threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act for protests following Floyd’s death in Minneapolis — an intervention rarely seen in modern American history.
But then-Defence Secretary Mark Esper pushed back, saying the law should be invoked “only in the most urgent and dire of situations.”
Trump did not invoke the Insurrection Act during his first term, and he did not invoke it on Saturday, according to Leavitt and Newsom.
The action came after a judge found probable cause that the employer was using fictitious documents for some of its workers, according to representatives for Homeland Security Investigations and the US Attorney’s Office.
A tense scene unfolded outside as a crowd tried to block agents from driving away.
Advocates for immigrants’ rights said there were also migration detentions outside Home Depot stores and a doughnut shop.
DHS said in a statement that recent ICE operations in Los Angeles resulted in the arrest of 118 immigrants, including five people linked to criminal organisations and people with prior criminal histories.
Following the Friday arrests, protesters gathered in the evening outside a federal detention centre, chanting, “Set them free, let them stay!”
Some held signs with anti-ICE slogans, and some some scrawled graffiti on the building.
Among those arrested at the protests was David Huerta, regional president of the Service Employees International Union.
Justice Department spokesperson Ciaran McEvoy confirmed that he was being held on Saturday at the Metropolitan Detention Centre in Los Angeles ahead of a scheduled Monday court appearance.
It was not clear whether Huerta had legal representation.
Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called for his immediate release. In a social media post, he cited a “disturbing pattern of arresting and detaining American citizens for exercising their right to free speech.”
The immigration arrests come as Trump and his administration push to fulfil promises of mass deportations across the country.
Mayor Karen Bass said the activity was meant to “sow terror” in the nation’s second-largest city.
In a statement on Saturday, ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons chided Bass for the city’s response to the protests.
“Mayor Bass took the side of chaos and lawlessness over law enforcement,” Lyons said. “Make no mistake, ICE will continue to enforce our nation’s immigration laws and arrest criminal illegal aliens.”
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