National Guard Deployment in Los Angeles County Amid Immigration Protests
President Trump has ordered at least 2,000 National Guard members to Los Angeles County to assist immigration agents amid clashes with protesters. The order, issued after officers faced off with demonstrators for a second day, escalates tensions over the administration's immigration crackdown. Any protest or act of violence impeding immigration officers is deemed a "form of rebellion."
In Compton, protesters threw glass bottles filled with a substance resembling gasoline at police, barricading themselves behind a dumpster. Some advanced toward a police line while others waved flags and beat drums. Active duty Marines at Camp Pendleton, south of Los Angeles, are on high alert and could be mobilized.
Protesters in Compton set a Home Depot shopping cart on fire as a barricade, prompting police to respond with flash-bangs and pepper balls. Gov. Newsom criticized the federal government's takeover of the California National Guard as a spectacle. President Trump's memo authorizes the deployment of National Guard troops for 60 days or as long as the defense secretary deems necessary.
Federal officials and the Los Angeles Police Department clashed over the response to protests, with demonstrators launching fireworks at police who retaliated with pepper balls. President Trump's deployment of National Guard troops without Gov. Newsom's request is a rare use of federal powers. Mayor Bass condemned violence and destruction during protests.
California Democrats anticipated Trump's deployment of troops in Democratic-run areas. Kathryn Barger urged protesters to demonstrate peacefully. ICE enforcement in Los Angeles has intensified as the administration aims for more arrests nationwide. The White House press secretary cited "violent mobs" targeting immigration agents as the reason for deploying National Guard troops.
Protesters continue to face off with law enforcement outside Home Depot, with hundreds of demonstrators present at the peak of the protest. California has been a focal point of the Trump administration's immigration enforcement efforts, leading to legal battles over sanctuary laws. Both the president and state governors have the authority to deploy the National Guard.