US National Guard troops have begun arriving in Los Angeles in response to ongoing protests, according to local broadcaster ABC7. Footage showed troops assembling near the Hall of Justice, close to Los Angeles City Hall, and driving through the Paramount neighborhood in the city’s southern region — a site of earlier clashes between protesters and federal agents, where tear gas was reportedly used.
The deployment comes after U.S. President Donald Trump bypassed California Governor Gavin Newsom’s authority, ordering 2,000 National Guard troops to be sent to the area under federal control, dw.com reports.
In a controversial and rare move, Trump invoked Title 10 authority, which allows the president to federalize state National Guard forces in times of rebellion or threat to federal authority.
Typically, state governors command their own National Guard units. However, Trump’s decision to assume direct control marks a significant federal intervention — reportedly the first of its kind in decades. The New York Times noted the last such instance was in 1965, when President Lyndon B. Johnson deployed troops to Alabama to protect civil rights marchers.
Governor Newsom strongly criticized the action, calling it “purposefully inflammatory” and warning that it would only increase tensions. He accused the federal government of seeking to provoke a spectacle and urged Californians to remain peaceful in response.
Legal scholars have also weighed in. Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of UC Berkeley School of Law, told the Los Angeles Times that Trump’s decision “uses the military domestically to stop dissent,” calling it deeply concerning. Elizabeth Goitein of the Brennan Center for Justice echoed the alarm, underscoring the historic rarity and potential implications of such federal overreach in domestic affairs.
The situation remains tense as federal and state authorities navigate the legal, political, and social ramifications of this unprecedented intervention.
