The US President, Donald Trump, on Monday ordered additional 2,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines to be deployed to Los Angeles (LA) to protect federal property and personnel.
The move followed days of clashes between authorities and demonstrators protesting against the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration. The troop deployment has caused a dispute between Trump and California Governor, Gavin Newsom, who decided to sue the administration.
US Marines to LA
As protests in Los Angeles entered its fourth day, Trump ordered the deployment of another 2,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines to support the nearly 300 National Guard troops who arrived in the city to help quell the protests.
Trump had ordered the deployment of an initial 2,000 troops in response to violent protests that swept LA over immigration crackdown. He said the deployment aims to thwart what he called “Migrant Invasion” and end riots.
California Rejects Troops
Trump’s orders have caused a dispute with California officials, who reject the increased military presence and consider it “inflammatory” and a “serious breach of state sovereignty.”
The California Governor, Gavin Newsom, and Los Angeles Mayor, Karen Bass, said that sending more military personnel was putting public safety at risk as the police said they don’t need the help. Newsom also described the deployment as “Reckless. Pointless. And Disrespectful to our troops,” he wrote on X.
Moreover, Los Angeles Police Chief, Jim McDonnell, expressed confidence in his forces’ ability to handle the protests. In a statement, he said that the lack of coordination between the Marines and the police department presented a “significant logistical and operational challenge.”
LA Protests
The protests broke out on Friday in downtown Los Angeles after federal agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other law enforcement agencies conducted raids across LA, arresting over 100 immigrants and sparking protests.
Protests intensified on Sunday, as thousands of protesters took to the streets, blocking off a major freeway and burning self-driving cars, while law enforcement responded with tear gas, rubber bullets and flash bangs, declaring several rallies “unlawful assemblies.”
More protests against immigration crackdown erupted across other cities, including San Francisco and Santa Ana in California and Dallas and Austin in Texas.
Protests in LA were significantly calmer on Monday morning, as thousands peacefully demonstrated at City Hall and hundreds protested outside a federal complex that includes a detention center holding immigrants. But as evening fell, officers grew more aggressive, sometimes rushing to arrest protesters who came too close.
Trump vs. Newsom
The US President has taken aim against California Governor, accusing him of being “very incompetent” and doing a “horrible job.” Trump defended his decision to send the National Guard troops, saying that otherwise, “Los Angeles would have been completely obliterated.”
Furthermore, Trump backed the “Border czar” Tom Homan threats of arresting Newsom and Mayor Bass if they obstructed troop deployment efforts. In response, Newsom called this “an unmistakable step toward authoritarianism.”
Lawsuit against Trump
In a further escalation of the dispute between Trump and Newsom, California Attorney General, Rob Bonta, filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration over the use of National Guard troops, saying that the move “trampled” the state’s sovereignty.
“We don’t take lightly to the president abusing his authority and unlawfully mobilizing California National Guard troops,” Bonta said during a virtual news conference on Monday.
The court filing said that Trump’s extraordinary deployment of troops to Los Angeles violates the 10th amendment in an “unprecedented usurpation” of state powers.
“The Governor of the State of California and the State of California bring this action to protect the State against the illegal actions of the President, Secretary of Defense, and Department of Defense to deploy members of the California National Guard, without lawful authority, and in violation of the Constitution,” it said.
