Trump Deploys Troops Amid Immigration Protest Unrest \ Newslooks \ Washington DC \ Mary Sidiqi \ Evening Edition \ President Donald Trump has ordered National Guard troops into Los Angeles to suppress protests over mass immigration raids. California leaders have pushed back, calling the deployment unconstitutional and escalatory. The move underscores Trump’s aggressive approach to immigration enforcement and executive power.
Quick Looks
- Trump overrides California governor to deploy National Guard.
- Deployment comes amid mass ICE raids in Los Angeles.
- Protests erupt across LA, Chicago, and Boston.
- California sues Trump administration over federal troop action.
- Active-duty Marines sent to support National Guard response.
- Trump accuses Gov. Newsom of “incompetence.”
- Critics call move authoritarian and legally dubious.
- Protests continue as deportation plans ramp up nationwide.
Deep Look
President Donald Trump’s campaign promise to implement the largest deportation operation in U.S. history is now being aggressively realized on the streets of Los Angeles, where protests against widespread immigration raids have led to a dramatic escalation: the deployment of National Guard troops and active-duty Marines—over the strong objections of California officials.
In a sweeping show of federal power, Trump activated the California National Guard and ordered an expansion of military presence to contain unrest sparked by a new wave of arrests by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The president’s decision to federalize the Guard without state consent marks the first such action in California in over 60 years, setting a volatile precedent.
Speaking to reporters, Trump defended the move: “If we didn’t do the job, that place would be burning down,” he said, claiming he had “no choice” but to intervene after what he described as state-level failure to restore order.
This move goes beyond Trump’s 2020 posture during the Black Lives Matter protests, when he threatened but ultimately refrained from deploying troops without state approval. Back then, he said, “I can’t call in the National Guard unless we’re requested by a governor.” Now, Trump is testing the outer limits of executive power with little internal opposition in his administration.
Federal immigration agents conducted high-profile raids on Friday at multiple locations in Los Angeles, including a Home Depot and businesses in the Fashion District. Protests erupted shortly after, escalating into clashes with police, blocked highways, and burned self-driving vehicles. Demonstrations spread nationwide, with coordinated actions in Chicago and Boston as well.
Trump’s administration has seized on viral images of street unrest—Mexican flags, graffiti, and overturned cars—to justify the crackdown. The optics play directly into his law-and-order political strategy as he demands billions from Congress to expand detention centers and fund a vast immigration removal infrastructure.
However, California officials are pushing back hard. On Monday, California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, accusing it of violating state sovereignty and seeking a restraining order to halt the troop deployment. The number of deployed troops could reach up to 4,000, federal officials confirmed.
“This is a crisis of Trump’s own making,” said Sen. Alex Padilla, California’s senior Democrat, who condemned the deployment as unnecessary and provocative. “There are people peacefully demanding due process and fundamental rights. Instead of listening, Trump escalates.”
Padilla’s office also pressed the Pentagon for a legal basis behind the military deployment. “As far as we’ve been told, the Department of Defense isn’t even sure what the mission is here,” he added.
This moment was telegraphed well before Trump returned to office. During his 2024 campaign, he promised the largest mass deportation in American history, citing President Eisenhower’s Operation Wetback as a model. He and his advisers have long hinted at using military force on U.S. soil to enforce immigration policy—a stance that sharply diverges from modern presidential norms.
Notably, Trump’s decision to quickly mobilize forces in California contrasts with his inaction on Jan. 6, 2021, when no formal request was made for National Guard deployment during the Capitol riot—despite his false claims otherwise.
The current administration is filled with allies who embrace executive authority, unlike in 2020 when Trump’s own Defense Secretary refused to invoke the Insurrection Act, an 1807 law that allows the president to use military force domestically.
Current Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth voiced support for the action, writing on X (formerly Twitter), “The National Guard—and Marines if need be—stand with ICE.” On Monday, the Pentagon confirmed that 700 active-duty Marines were being deployed to support the Guard in Los Angeles.
Inside the White House, aides argue that Gov. Gavin Newsom failed to manage the protests. According to officials, Trump warned Newsom in a phone call Friday night to “get control” of Los Angeles. When the White House deemed the response inadequate, Trump acted.
“He’s an incompetent governor,” Trump said. “Look at California. It’s a disaster.”
Local law enforcement insists they responded quickly and capably, while Newsom and city leaders stress that Los Angeles has long experience managing protests without federal intervention. “We have community trust. That’s something the federal government doesn’t understand,” said Sen. Padilla.
Even some within Trump’s orbit are questioning the tactics. Ileana Garcia, founder of Latinas for Trump and a former GOP outreach leader, called the operation “unacceptable and inhumane.”
“These raids are targeting people who are showing up for immigration hearings and have credible fear claims,” Garcia said, linking the actions to Stephen Miller, Trump’s hardline immigration adviser, calling it “a Miller-inspired fantasy to fulfill a self-created deportation quota.”
This may only be the beginning. Trump and the Republican-controlled Congress are advancing legislation to allocate billions of dollars to immigration enforcement, including 100,000 new detention beds and the hiring of thousands of Border Patrol and ICE officers. The goal: deport 1 million immigrants per year.
As the protests continue, so too does the debate over whether the nation is witnessing immigration policy enforcement or the rise of a militarized crackdown on dissent.
Trump Deploys Troops
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