Protests in Los Angeles: Pentagon mobilizes another 2,000 national guards

At the instructions of President Donald Trump, the US Department of Defense mobilizes a further 2,000 soldiers of the National Guard for an assignment in protests against US migration policy in Los Angeles. This was announced by Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell on the online platform X. The soldiers of the National Guard of California would be called to the Federal Service to support the US immigration authority ICE and enable federal employees to “secure” their tasks.

California’s governor Gavin Newsom had previously announced that he had been informed about the step. “This is not about public security. It’s about stroking the ego of a dangerous president,” the Democrat criticized on the X.

Just before, the Pentagon had announced that because of the protests against Trump’s migration policy, around 700 marine fans of the regular armed forces to Los Angeles. The use of the regular army inside is another serious escalation around the protests against the procedure of the US immigration authority in the Los Angeles area. Soldiers are trained for military missions and the war, not for police tasks such as control of protests in American city centers.

Thousands of national guards have already been mobilized

At the weekend, Trump had already mobilized at least 2,000 soldiers from the National Guard – against the will of Newsom. Newsom described the new announcement as reckless and senseless “and disrespectful towards our troops”. The first 2,000 national guards would have not received any food or water. “Only about 300 are in use – the rest sits unused in federal buildings without having any commands.”

Newsom criticized that one of the cornerstones of the United States and the democracy was that the people are ruled by a civilian and not a military government. “The founding fathers have anchored these principles in the constitution – that a government should be accountable to their people, adheres to the rule of law and is a civilian authority, no military government. California will defend these principles in court.”

In the United States, states normally have control over the national guard. If there is a war or national emergencies, the US President can take command. The National Guard is a military reserve unit and part of the US armed forces.

Each state has its own national guard, which can be used in natural disasters, unrest or emergencies inside. Their commitment to the governor’s resistance is a highly unusual demonstration of power for the government. Since 1965, no US President had taken over the national guard of a state against its declared will.