Trump Sends 700 Marines To Respond To L.A. Protests Over ICE Raids

by Kevin MaguireJune 10, 2025, 5:36 pmHomepage Slider, News >

President Donald Trump mobilized more than 700 Marines to join thousands of National Guardsmen on Monday in response to widespread protests over immigration raids in Los Angeles.

Trump’s order follows a lawsuit issued by California officials on Monday accusing the president of overstepping his authority and infringing on the state’s sovereignty.

Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-California), who did not request any federal intervention in response to the widespread protests, objected to the president’s actions.

“This is an unmistakable step toward authoritarianism that threatens the foundation of our republic. We cannot let it stand,” said Newsom on social media. “This isn’t about public safety. It’s about stroking a dangerous President’s ego.”

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Trump suggested that Newsom should be arrested for interfering with federal immigration enforcement efforts.

The protests began after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids led to the arrests of over 100 immigrants. While protests were initially conducted in a peaceful manner, LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell said Sunday that the unrest was becoming “increasingly worse and more violent.”

As tension rose on Sunday, the LAPD declared an unlawful assembly after demonstrators began “throwing concrete, bottles and other objects” and “damaging multiple police vehicles.”

That same night, Trump wrote in a post to social media, “ARREST THE PEOPLE IN FACE MASKS, NOW.”

Trump told reporters that Los Angeles would have been “completely obliterated” without the deployment of the National Guard. “The people that are causing the problem are professional agitators. They’re insurrectionists,” he added.

Trump’s actions seem to indicate a willingness to invoke the Insurrection Act, which allows the deployment of U.S. troops to repress domestic unrest and disorder. It is considered one of the most extreme emergency powers available to a president.

The last time the act was used was in 1992 during the Los Angeles riots.

When asked whether he was prepared to call upon the Insurrection Act, Trump responded by saying it “depends on whether or not there is an insurrection.”