LOS ANGELES (AP) — About 300 National Guard troops were deployed in Los Angeles on Sunday on orders from President Donald Trump following clashes between federal immigration authorities and protesters seeking to block them from carrying out deportations.
Some of the troops were stationed outside Metropolitan Detention Center in downtown Los Angeles, one of several sites that have seen confrontations involving hundreds of demonstrators and federal law enforcement in the last two days.
As the guards stood around a federal complex, dressed in tactical gear and carrying long guns, the surrounding streets were largely quiet, with just a handful of protesters gathered on a sidewalk.
U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) criticized the decision, calling it a ‘waste of our troops’ time.’”
“Nobody protested when due process was followed and real criminals were targeted. This is about Trump abusing the system, separating families and deporting kids. Now they’re sending troops against civilians. This is deliberate chaos and an unnecessary escalation,” Gallego said.
“Civilian law enforcement—not the military—is responsible for enforcing the law and dealing with any violence in our streets. This is a waste of our troops’ time, a waste of taxpayer money, and an insult to the men and women who serve. As a Marine, I know our military exists to defend our country from foreign threats, not to batter American protestors.”
The move came over the objections of Newsom, who accused Trump of a “complete overreaction.” It marked the first time in decades that a state’s national guard was activated without a request from its governor, according to the Brennan Center for Justice.
In a directive Saturday, Trump invoked a legal provision allowing him to deploy federal service members when there is ”a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States.”
Approximately 300 National Guard members were deployed Sunday to three separate locations in the greater Los Angeles area, according to military officials. Several protests and marches were scheduled to kick off Sunday.
The arrival of the guard follows two days of relatively small protests that began Friday in downtown Los Angeles before spreading on Saturday to Paramount, a heavily Latino city south of the city, and neighboring Compton.
As federal agents set up a staging area near a Home Depot in Paramount, demonstrators sought to block Border Patrol vehicles, with some hurling rocks and chunks of cement. In response, federal agents in riot gear unleashed tear gas, flash-bang explosives and pepper balls. Los Angeles police said dozens were arrested.
Tensions were high after a series of sweeps by immigration authorities the previous day, as the weeklong tally of immigrant arrests in the city climbed past 100. A prominent union leader was arrested while protesting and accused of impeding law enforcement.
Newsom called Trump on Friday night and they spoke for about 40 minutes, according to the governor’s office. It was not clear if they spoke Saturday or Sunday.
There was some confusion surrounding the exact timing of the guard’s arrival. Shortly before midnight local time, Trump congratulated the National Guard on a “job well done.” But less than an hour later, Bass said troops had yet to arrive in the city.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Sunday that the purpose of the deployment was to “provide security for operations and to make sure that there are peaceful protests.”
The troops included members of the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, according to a social media post from the Department of Defense that showed dozens of National Guard members with long guns and an armored vehicle.
In a signal of the administration’s aggressive approach, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also threatened to deploy active-duty Marines “if violence continues” in the region.
Newsom, a Democrat, described Trump’s decision to call in the National Guard as a “provocative show of force” that would only escalate tensions, adding that Hegseth’s threat to deploy Marines on American soil was “deranged behavior.”
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders said the order by Trump reflected “a president moving this country rapidly into authoritarianism” and “usurping the powers of the United States Congress.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson, a staunch Trump ally, endorsed the president’s move, doubling down on Republicans’ criticisms of California Democrats.
“Gavin Newsom has shown an inability or an unwillingness to do what is necessary, so the president stepped in,” Johnson said.
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