White House escalates immigration fight with bold military move

• California sues Trump govt against National Guard deployment.
• US military troops to protect federal property, personnel in LA.
• Democrats decry contentious move as abuse of presidential power.

LOS ANGELES/WASHINGTON: The US military will temporarily deploy around 700 Marines to Los Angeles until more National Guard troops can arrive, marking another escalation in President Donald Trump's response to street protests over his hardline immigration policies.

Monday marked the fourth consecutive day of protests in Los Angeles, with hundreds of demonstrators gathering outside a federal detention centre where immigrants have been held.

The US military said a battalion would be sent to help protect federal property and personnel until more National Guard troops could reach the scene. For now, the Trump administration is not invoking the Insurrection Act, which would allow troops to directly participate in civilian law enforcement, according to a US official speaking on condition of anonymity.

California sued the Trump administration on Monday to block the deployment of the National Guard and the Marines, arguing that it violates federal law and state sovereignty. Shortly afterwards, California Governor Gavin Newsom said he had been informed that Trump is deploying another 2,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles, following Trump’s announcement on Saturday that an initial 2,000 troops would be deployed.

Tensions have been rising since Trump activated the National Guard on Saturday after street protests erupted in response to immigration raids in Southern California. It is the biggest flashpoint yet in the Trump administration’s relentless efforts to deport migrants living in the country illegally.

Los Angeles police chief Jim McDonnell said his department had not received any formal notification that the Marines would be arriving in the city. The deployment "presents a significant logistical and operational challenge," he said.

Trump stated on Monday that he felt he had no choice but to order the deployment to prevent violence from spiralling out of control.

The protests have so far resulted in some property damage, including several self-driving Waymo vehicles that were set ablaze on Sunday evening. The Los Angeles Police Department said five officers sustained minor injuries. Police said some protesters threw concrete and bottles at officers.

Democrats said Trump’s decision to deploy military force to manage the protests amounts to an abuse of presidential power.

“The level of escalation is completely unwarranted, uncalled for, and unprecedented,” Newsom’s press office posted on X.

Trump voiced support for a suggestion by his border czar Tom Homan that Newsom should be arrested over possible obstruction of his administration’s immigration enforcement measures. “I would do it if I were Tom. I think it’s great,” Trump told reporters.

Paintballs, eggs

In Los Angeles, several hundred protesters chanted “free them all” outside a federal detention facility where immigrants have been held. National Guard troops and police formed a perimeter around the building.

“What is happening affects every American, everyone who wants to live free, regardless of how long their family has lived here,” said Marzita Cerrato, 42, a first-generation immigrant whose parents are from Mexico and Honduras.

Some in the crowd punched and threw eggs at a Trump supporter at the scene, while others fired paintballs from a car at the federal building.

Protests also erupted in at least nine other US cities on Monday, including New York, Philadelphia and San Francisco, according to local media.

The Trump administration has argued that Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration allowed far too many immigrants to enter the country and that Democratic-run cities such as Los Angeles are improperly interfering with efforts to deport them. Trump has pledged to deport record numbers of people who are in the country illegally and to lock down the US-Mexico border, setting a goal of at least 3,000 daily arrests.

US Marines have been deployed domestically for major disasters such as Hurricane Katrina and the September 11, 2001, attacks, but it is extremely rare for US military troops to be used for domestic policing.

Trump could deploy Marines under certain legal provisions or under his authority as commander-in-chief. Without invoking the Insurrection Act, the Marines, like the National Guard, would still be barred from directly enforcing civilian laws and would likely be limited to protecting federal personnel and property.

The last time the military was used for direct police action under the Insurrection Act was in 1992, when the California governor at the time asked President George H. W. Bush to help respond to the Los Angeles riots following the acquittal of police officers who beat Black motorist Rodney King.

More than 50 people were killed in the 1992 riots, which also caused some $1 billion in damage over six days.

Federal law allows the president to deploy the National Guard if the nation is invaded, if there is “rebellion or danger of rebellion,” or the president is “unable with the regular forces to execute the laws of the United States.”