Marines sent to Los Angeles to contain protesters: Trump demands Newsom's arrest
US sends Marines to Los Angeles, Trump backs arrest of California governor - city remains tense, writes Reuters.
Photo: Larry Gibson | Dreamstime.com
The U.S. military has temporarily deployed about 700 Marines to Los Angeles pending the arrival of additional National Guard troops, President Donald Trump's response to street protests over his hardline immigration policies.
Los Angeles entered its fourth day of protests on June 9, with hundreds of demonstrators gathering outside a federal detention center where immigrants are being held.
On the subject: Los Angeles Clashes Over Deportation Protests: Trump Sends National Guard to City
The U.S. military has said it will send a battalion to protect federal property and personnel before the National Guard arrives in the city, although the Trump administration has not yet enacted the Insurrection Act, which would allow the military to directly participate in law enforcement, a U.S. official said on condition of anonymity.
California officials filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration on June 9, seeking to block the deployment of the National Guard and Marines. They argue that it violates federal law and state sovereignty. Shortly thereafter, California Governor Gavin Newsom said he had learned that Trump intended to send 2000 more National Guard troops to Los Angeles, in addition to the 7 he had announced on June XNUMX.
Tensions began to mount after Trump activated the National Guard on June 7 amid protests that erupted in response to immigration raids in Southern California, the most serious flashpoint yet over the Trump administration's aggressive deportation of undocumented immigrants.
Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said his department had not received formal notification of the Marines' arrival.
"Such a deployment presents a serious logistical and operational challenge," he stressed.
Trump said on June 9 that he had no choice but to order the deployment of troops to prevent the violence from getting out of control.
The protests so far have resulted in property damage, including several Waymo self-driving cars being set on fire on Sunday, June 8. The Los Angeles police department reported five officers were slightly injured. Some protesters threw concrete and bottles at officers, police said.
Democrats accused Trump of abusing his presidential powers and said the use of the military to suppress protests was unacceptable.
“The level of escalation is completely unwarranted and unprecedented,” Gov. Newsom’s office wrote on Platform X.
Trump, among other things, supported the proposal of his border adviser Tom Homan to arrest Governor Newsom for possible obstruction of the White House administration's immigration policy.
"That's what I would do if I were Tom. I think it's the right thing to do," Trump told reporters.
Paintballs and eggs
In Los Angeles, several hundred protesters outside a federal immigration detention center chanted "Freedom for all!" National Guard troops and police formed a cordon around the building.
"What's happening affects every American, every person who wants to live freely, no matter how many generations their family has lived in this country," said Marcita Serato, 42, whose parents are from Mexico and Honduras.
Participants in the protest threw eggs at a Trump supporter who came to the event and fired paintballs filled with paint from a car at a federal building.
Protests broke out in at least nine other US cities on June 9, including New York, Philadelphia and San Francisco.
The Trump administration argues that Democrat Joe Biden’s policies during his presidency allowed too many immigrants into the country, and that Democratic-run cities like Los Angeles are now hampering efforts to deport them. Trump has vowed to set a record for deporting illegal immigrants and to beef up border security with Mexico, aiming for at least 3000 arrests a day.
The U.S. Marine Corps has previously been called upon to respond to major disasters, such as Hurricane Katrina and the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. However, the military is rarely used to perform domestic policing duties.
Trump could deploy the Marines under certain statutes or under his authority as commander in chief. But without the Insurrection Act in effect, the Marines, like the National Guard, cannot directly enforce civil laws and will likely be limited to protecting federal property and personnel.
The last time the military was used directly in police operations in the United States under the Insurrection Act was in 1992, when California's governor asked President George H.W. Bush to help quell riots in Los Angeles following the acquittal of police officers who beat black driver Rodney King.
The 1992 riots left more than 50 people dead and caused about a billion dollars in damage in six days.
Federal law allows the president to deploy the National Guard in the event of a foreign invasion, "insurrection or threat of insurrection," or if "the President is unable by regular forces to execute the laws of the United States."
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