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National Guard troops were deployed on the streets of Los Angeles on Sunday as the Trump administration took a hard line to quell protests against raids on suspected illegal immigrants.
The move, sanctioned by President Donald Trump on Saturday using a rarely invoked law designed to repress invasions and rebellions, was decried by the state’s governor Gavin Newsom as “inflammatory”.
It comes after two days of unrest in the second-largest US city that were prompted by federal agents arresting dozens of people in a sweep of local businesses. More protests have been planned for Sunday afternoon.
The deployment will test the ability of heavily Democratic states to resist the Trump administration and protect their citizens from its enforcement actions.
Law enforcement officers faced off with hundreds of protesters over the weekend, in some cases firing rubber bullets and using flash-bang grenades.
However, by late on Saturday California’s leaders said the situation had been brought under control and that support from federal forces was not necessary.
“The federal government is taking over the California National Guard and deploying 2,000 soldiers in Los Angeles — not because there is a shortage of law enforcement, but because they want a spectacle,” Newsom said late on Saturday, adding: “Don’t give them one.”
On Saturday night, defence secretary Pete Hegseth ratcheted up the threat to California, a self-designated sanctuary for undocumented immigrants, by warning that the Trump administration could mobilise active duty Marines based near San Diego. Newsom called the move “deranged”.
House Speaker and Trump ally Mike Johnson defended the threat, telling ABC News: “We have to be prepared to do what is necessary, and I think the notice that that might happen might have the deterring effect.”
But Vermont senator Bernie Sanders, who votes with Democrats, warned that Trump was “moving this country rapidly toward authoritarianism”. He accused the president of defying the Constitution and the rule of law.
Nanette Barragán, a Democratic member of Congress whose district includes the areas of southern Los Angeles that witnessed many of the protests, told CNN that Trump was “sending in the National Guard because he doesn’t like the scenes. He doesn’t like the scenes of people peacefully protesting.”
She added that she had spoken to sheriffs on the ground who said they had things under control and that there was no need for federal backup.
Barragán said officials in Los Angeles had been told by the federal government to “get ready for 30 days of enforcement”, while border tsar Tom Homan told NBC that “around 150” undocumented immigrants had already been detained in the city over the past two days.
The precise number of troops deployed was not confirmed by authorities on Sunday.
The US Northern Command said “that elements of the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team from the California National Guard have begun deploying to the Los Angeles area” and that additional information would be provided “as units are identified and deployed”.
The deployment of the National Guard in Los Angeles comes amid a broader stand-off between the White House and California.
The Trump administration, which has been aiming for a “minimum” of 3,000 migrant arrests daily, has clashed with the predominantly Democratic state, after officials vowed resistance and non-cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids.
Trump has threatened federal funding cuts due to California’s positions on immigration, transgender rights and other matters.
In retaliation, Newsom proposed that California might withhold federal tax payments, stating on X: “Californians pay the bills for the federal government . . . Maybe it’s time to cut that off.”
He noted that the state contributes over $80bn more in taxes than it receives back.
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