LA Erupts in Protest: 2,700 Troops Deployed to ‘Clean Trump’s Mess’ – 700 Marines, 2,000 National Guard Sent Amid Unrest
LA erupts in protests as President Trump deploys 700 Marines and 2,000 National Guard troops to restore order. Total of 2,700 forces sent amid rising unrest.
is expected to deploy about 700 active-duty Marines to Los Angeles from southern California in the wake of protests against immigration authorities, three US officials said Monday. Meanwhile, California officials sued US President Donald Trump, seeking to roll back the administration’s National Guard deployment.
According to reports, Trump has ordered the Department of Defense to deploy an additional 2,000 California National Guard members to the Los Angeles area to support US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) amid ongoing protests in the city.
The extraordinary mobilisation of 700 full-time professional military personnel – who join hundreds of National Guard troops already there – looked likely to stoke tensions in a city with a huge Latino population.
Here’s all you need to know about Trump’s deployment of National Guard troops to LA immigration protests:
- US officials said about 1,000 National Guard members were in the city under federal orders by midday Monday to respond to immigration protests. The full 2,000 members initially authorised by Trump were expected to be on the ground by the end of the day. Later Monday, Trump authorised the deployment of an additional 2,000 National Guard members, the Associated Press reported. The latest order brings the total number of Guard put on federal orders for the protests to more than 4,100.
- California officials sued President Donald Trump on Monday, seeking to roll back the administration’s National Guard deployment. California Attorney General Rob Bonta called the National Guard deployment “unlawful” and said it “trampled” on the state’s sovereignty. Bonta sued the Trump administration Monday in response.
- According to CNN, the lawsuit, filed in federal court in San Francisco, named President Donald Trump, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and the United States Department of Defense as defendants and said Trump did not have the authority to deploy the California National Guard.
- Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, told MSNBC that he also plans to file suit Monday against the Trump administration. Gavin Newsom called the presence of troops on the streets of Los Angeles both “illegal and immoral.”
- Meanwhile, the Pentagon is also expected to deploy about 700 Marines to Los Angeles from southern California, three US officials said Monday. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the details of military operations. The Marines are highly trained in combat and crisis response, with time in conflict zones like Syria and Afghanistan.
- Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth got advice about Marine deployment from Joint Chiefs chairman. Hegseth tweeted late Saturday that he was considering deploying the Marines to respond to the unrest after getting advice earlier in the day from Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs, a US official said.
- LAPD chief says Marines’ arrival could cause problems if it’s not coordinated with police. Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said the department has not been given any “formal notification” that the Marines will be coming to the city.
- Pentagon is working on rules to guide Marines heading to LA. The memo is expected to lay out the steps the 700 Marines can take to protect federal personnel and property during protests over immigration raids. “Those guidelines also will include specifics on the possibility that they could temporarily detain civilians until they could be turned over to law enforcement if troops are under assault or to prevent harm,” a US official said.
- California Governor Gavin Newsom said he had met “with local and state officials to clean Trump’s mess.” Newsom wrote on X, “Meeting with local and state officials to discuss strategies to maintain peace in Los Angeles. State and local leaders are standing together to clean Trump’s mess and pick up the pieces to ensure the safety of our communities.”
- Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass says the city is being “used for an experiment” by the federal government as they bring in National Guard and Marines to counter immigration protests.
- Videos surfaced on social media on Tuesday, claiming to show that “dozens of LA Sheriffs just rolled up with armored trucks and full tactical gear preparing for more riots.”
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