LA Protests Lead to Federal Deployment of National Guard
On Friday, 6 June, a small protest confronted Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers at a Los Angeles Home Depot. It is a place where day laborers linger hoping to be picked up for jobs, and many of those would-be laborers are suspected to be living in the country either illegally or awaiting immigration hearings.
The Home Depot was one of several places around the city with ICE activity, signaling a wider federal crackdown in Los Angeles. As the actions continued, so did the protests, which grew in size from dozens to hundreds from Friday into Saturday, and included police deploying anti-riot tactics including tear gas, pepper balls, and flash-bang grenades.
Throughout the day Saturday, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security moved security resources to Los Angeles to protect ICE agents who were instructed to continue their operations and to protect a federal facility that was one of the focal points of the protest.
On Saturday evening, U.S. President Donald Trump made the controversial decision to take control of the California National Guard and deploy up to 2,000 guardsmen. The mission of the deployment is to protect ICE officers and federal property, not to take direct law enforcement actions, which experts said would require the president to invoke the Insurrection Act.
The move was immediately condemned by California Governor Gavin Newsom, who said, “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.”
The protests continued to swell and heat up on Sunday. As many as 2,000 of the 6,000 protestors shutdown the southbound side of the 101 Freeway. The protestors threw rocks, concrete, and other items at police cars from one overpass, sending officers under the overpass for shelter. Several Waymo driverless cars were set ablaze, and there were other reports of looting and violence, including a report of a person driving a van who acted as if the driver was going to drive into a crowd of protestors. At least 300 National Guard troops were deployed on Sunday, and Los Angeles police made dozens of arrests.
Just as the protests escalated Sunday, so did the rhetoric around the National Guard mobilization. Newsom said the takeover of the state guard unit was unlawful. In a letter addressed to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, the Newsom administration said, “There is currently no need for the National Guard to be deployed in Los Angeles, and to do so in this unlawful manner and for such a lengthy period is a serious breach of state sovereignty that seems intentionally designed to inflame the situation, while simultaneously depriving the State from deploying these personnel and resources where they are truly required. Accordingly, we ask that you immediately rescind your order and return the National Guard to its rightful control by the State of California, to be deployed as appropriate when necessary.”
I have formally requested the Trump Administration rescind their unlawful deployment of troops in Los Angeles county and return them to my command.
— Governor Gavin Newsom (@CAgovernor) June 8, 2025
We didn’t have a problem until Trump got involved. This is a serious breach of state sovereignty — inflaming tensions while… pic.twitter.com/SYIy81SZdH
Hegseth posted on social media that in addition to the National Guard, U.S. Marines were “on high alert” and could be mobilized.
The violent mob assaults on ICE and Federal Law Enforcement are designed to prevent the removal of Criminal Illegal Aliens from our soil; a dangerous invasion facilitated by criminal cartels (aka Foreign Terrorist Organizations) and a huge NATIONAL SECURITY RISK.
— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) June 8, 2025
Under President…
No significant protest or enforcement actions occurred Monday morning, though more protests are expected throughout Monday afternoon and evening.
