Trump deploys National Guard over Los Angeles immigration protests

Trump deploys 2,000 troops in California despite Governor's objections, leading to clashes between immigration authorities and demonstrators.

U.S. President Donald Trump is deploying 2,000 California National Guard troops despite the Governor's objections to Los Angeles over where protests on Saturday (June 7, 2025) led to clashes between immigration authorities and demonstrators.

The White House said in a statement on Saturday that Mr. Trump was deploying the Guardsmen to “address the lawlessness that has been allowed to fester” in California.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, objected to the move and said in a post on X that the move from the Republican President was “purposefully inflammatory and will only escalate tensions.”

Federal agents clashed with angry crowds in a Los Angeles suburb as protests stretched into a second night Saturday, shooting flash-bang grenades and shutting part of a freeway amid raids on undocumented migrants, reports said.

The standoff took place in Paramount, where demonstrators had gathered near a Home Depot that was being used as a staging area by federal immigration officials, the Fox 11 news outlet reported.

They were met by federal agents in gas masks, who lobbed flash-bang grenades and tear gas at the crowd, according to news reports and social media posts.

Since taking office in January, Republican Trump has delivered on a promise to crack down hard on the entry and presence of undocumented migrants — who he has likened to “monsters” and “animals.”