President Donald Trump on Sunday morning thanked the National Guard “for a job well done” in responding to anti-ICE demonstrations in Los Angeles, California, and said masks will not be allowed at protests.

Trump took jabs at California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass, both Democrats, as he gave high praise to the National Guard.

“Great job by the National Guard in Los Angeles after two days of violence, clashes and unrest. We have an incompetent Governor (Newscum) and Mayor (Bass) who were, as usual (just look at how they handled the fires, and now their VERY SLOW PERMITTING disaster. Federal permitting is complete!), unable to to handle the task,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

“These Radical Left protests, by instigators and often paid troublemakers, will NOT BE TOLERATED,” he continued. “Also, from now on, MASKS WILL NOT BE ALLOWED to be worn at protests. What do these people have to hide, and why??? Again, thank you to the National Guard for a job well done!”

The Trump administration announced Saturday it was deploying the National Guard to Los Angeles in response to large-scale protests that erupted Saturday following dozens of arrests Friday in citywide Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations.

“If Governor Gavin Newscum, of California, and Mayor Karen Bass, of Los Angeles, can’t do their jobs, which everyone knows they can’t, then the Federal Government will step in and solve the problem, RIOTS & LOOTERS, the way it should be solved!!!” the president posted to his Truth Social platform Saturday evening.

Mr. Trump’s memo stated that at least 2,000 National Guard troops were being deployed under the president’s Title 10 authority “for 60 days or at the discretion of the Secretary of Defense.”

People block off the street and set a fire during protests against ICE on June 7, 2025 in Paramount, California. Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

The president also used Title 10 authority to order the deployment of troops to the southern border after taking office in January.

A Defense Department official told CBS News that the vast majority of the 2,000 soldiers are from the California National Guard.

“In addition, the Secretary of Defense may employ any other members of the regular Armed Forces as necessary to augment and support the protection of Federal functions and property in any number determined appropriate in his discretion,” the memo read.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a social media post that the National Guard was being mobilized “IMMEDIATELY to support federal law enforcement in Los Angeles.” Hegseth added that if the violence continues, he would also mobile “active duty Marines” from Camp Pendleton in San Diego County. He said the Marines were already on “high alert.”

The message came after Trump administration border czar Tom Homan said in an interview on Fox News earlier Saturday that “We’re going to bring National Guard in tonight. We’re going to continue doing our job. We’re going to push back on these people, and we’re going to enforce the law.”

A spokesperson for California Gov. Gavin Newsom told CBS News Saturday night that Newsom called Mr. Trump and the two spoke for about 40 minutes.

Prior to that, in a post to X in response to the National Guard deployment order, Newsom wrote that the “federal government is moving to take over the California National Guard and deploy 2,000 soldiers. That move is purposefully inflammatory and will only escalate tensions. LA authorities are able to access law enforcement assistance at a moment’s notice. We are in close coordination with the city and county, and there is currently no unmet need. The Guard has been admirably serving LA throughout recovery. This is the wrong mission and will erode public trust.”

Newsom also wrote that additional California Highway Patrol units were being deployed L.A. area highways to “keep the peace.”

“The federal government is sowing chaos so they can have an excuse to escalate,” Newsom said. “That is not the way any civilized country behaves.”

Whether the president can call in the National Guard without Newsom’s approval was unclear.

In a social media post Saturday night, L.A. Mayor Karen Bass said that city officials had “been in direct contact with officials in Washington, D.C., and are working closely with law enforcement to find the best path forward.”

The use of Title 10 authority is a waiver of the Posse Comitatus Act, which is a U.S. federal law that restricts the use of the U.S. military for law enforcement within the U.S., except in cases explicitly authorized by the Constitution or an Act of Congress.

Police kick tear gas back to the crowd as people block off a street and set a fire during protests against immigration raids that were conducted by ICE. June 7, 2025 in Paramount, California. Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Protesters and authorities clash

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department confirmed on Saturday that another protest erupted in the city of Paramount after it appeared that federal law enforcement officers were conducting another operation.

The department said in a statement that a large crowd was blocking traffic in the 6400 block of Paramount Boulevard at around 12:42 p.m.

Paramount, CA – June 07: in Paramount – People block off the street and set a fire during protests against ICE and immigration raids on Saturday, June 7, 2025 in Paramount, CA. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) Myung J. Chun

During a press conference Saturday afternoon, L.A. County Sheriff Robert Luna said that there were as many as 400 people gathered for the protests, which led the department to declare unlawful assembly as they sought to have everyone involved “disperse peacefully without any violence.”

He said that non-lethal munitions were fired by federal agents prior to deputies’ arrival.

California Highway Patrol confirmed to CBS News Los Angeles that officers had been preparing for protesters to attempt to march onto the 710 Freeway. As of 6 p.m., protesters hadn’t yet obstructed any freeway lanes.

The L.A. County Fire Department said that one person was transported to a local hospital from the scene around 12:45 p.m. The extent of their injuries aren’t yet clear.

LASD officials confirmed to CBS News Los Angeles reporters late Saturday evening that two people were arrested for assault on a peace officers. One of those people allegedly threw a molotov cocktail, which struck three deputies.

Images captured by CBS News Los Angeles at the scene showed several dozen protesters gathering on the streets of Paramount. Some attempted to get in the way of a U.S. Marshals Service bus, while others threw rocks and other objects at law enforcement vehicles.

Tricia McLaughlin, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, said in a statement regarding Saturday events in Paramount that, “Despite false reports, there was no ICE ‘raid’ at a Home Depot in LA today. DHS has a nearby office in Paramount that they are using as a staging area and rioters found it. This violence against ICE must stop.”

Later on Saturday, protests continued on the border of Paramount and the city of Compton, where hundreds of demonstrators gathered around a car that was lit on fire in the middle of an intersection near Dale’s Donuts. Some vehicles performed burnouts while others rode dirt bikes around the blaze while waving flags.

Authorities looked on from a distance, some of whom were seen wearing riot gear.

A pair of fire trucks arrived about 10 minutes after the car first caught fire, with crews quickly extinguishing the flames. Deputies formed a perimeter around the intersection as the firefighting effort continued.

At the same time, a smaller crowd had once again gathered outside of the detention center. They remained outside throughout the day until around 8:30 p.m., when a group of about three dozen federal agents emerged from within the building and began to fire flash-bang grenades and tear gas canisters. They formed a skirmish line in front of the building as demonstrators ran.

The line of agents continued to move forward, pushing the crowd from the area as they deployed smoke-filled canisters.

Similar to Friday, an unlawful assembly was declared and a dispersal order issued by Los Angeles police as the situation intensified. Dozens of LAPD officers were dispatched to the area as the situation progressed. CBS News Los Angeles reporters saw multiple people as they were detained by officers.

“Multiple people have been detained for failing to disperse after multiple warnings were issued,” said a post on X from LAPD’s Central Division. “Remaining people in the area of the UNLAWFUL ASSEMBLY will be subject to arrest.”

Demonstrations start after Friday’s operations

Saturday’s demonstration comes just hours after multiple protests broke out in downtown Los Angeles on Friday evening, after several immigration operations were conducted across the city.

CBS News Los Angeles learned that ICE conducted raids in the Westlake District, downtown L.A. and South L.A. on Friday. According to an ICE spokesperson, as many as 118 arrests have been made in L.A. this week, which includes 44 in those operations on Friday.

“ICE officers and agents alongside partner law enforcement agencies, executed four federal search warrants at three locations in central Los Angeles,” the spokesperson, Yasmeen Pitts O’Keefe said. “Approximately 44 people were administratively arrested and one arrest for obstruction. The investigation remains ongoing, updates will follow as appropriate.”

She confirmed that at least one of the warrants executed was related to the “harboring of people illegally in the country.”

Images from SKYCal footage taken Friday showed one of the apparent raids appearing to take place outside of a Home Depot store in the Westlake District.

The multiple protests eventually centered around the Federal Building in downtown L.A. after word spread among demonstrators that detainees were allegedly being held in that building in the evening.

Some demonstrators were seen spraying graffiti on the side of the building, while others threw what police called pieces of concrete in their direction. This led to an unlawful assembly declaration and dispersal order from LAPD officers. They cleared the area as dozens of officers wearing riot gear formed a skirmish line to push the crowd back.

Later in the evening, another group converged outside of a parking lot in Chinatown, where federal agents could be seen staging, prompting concerns of further operations taking place overnight.

Paramount, CA – June 07: in Paramount – Police kick tear gas back to the crowd as people block off the street and set a fire during protests against ICE and immigration raids on Saturday, June 7, 2025 in Paramount, CA. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) Myung J. Chun

Reaction

Among the dozens of detainments, Service Employees International Union-United Service Workers West President David Huerta was arrested while protesting Friday, he confirmed.

“What happened to me is not about me; This is about something much bigger. This is about how we as a community stand together and resist the injustice that’s happening. Hard-working people, and members of our family and our community, are being treated like criminals,” Huerta said in a statement afterwards. “We all collectively have to object to this madness because this is not justice. This is injustice. And we all have to stand on the right side of justice.”

U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said in a post to X on Friday that Huerta “deliberately obstructed” federal agents by blocking their vehicle while they executed a “lawful judicial warrant.” Essayli said Huerta will be arraigned in federal court on Monday after being arrested on suspicion of interfering with federal officers.

On Saturday, Essayli confirmed that more federal law enforcement operations in L.A. County would “proceed as planned” through the weekend.

In a post to X, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Kristi Noem told protesters that they “will not stop” or “slow down” ICE.

“If you lay a hand on a law enforcement officer, you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” she said.

Attorney General Pam Bondi echoed this in her own post on X, which said, “It doesn’t matter if you’re a judge, a member of Congress, or a protestor in Los Angeles: If you obstruct or assault a law enforcement officer, this Department of Justice will prosecute you.”

FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino said that “multiple arrests have already been made for obstructing” operations and that “more are coming.”

“You bring chaos, and we’ll bring handcuffs. Law and order will prevail,” said Bongino’s post on X.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JUNE 06: LAPD officers arrest a protester outside of the Federal Building in downtown Los Angeles after the FBI and Ice Agents made arrests of illegal immigrants located in DTLA in Los Angeles, California, United States on June 06, 2025. Jon Putman/Anadolu via Getty Images

L.A. leaders criticized the federal government and Mr. Trump’s push to increase immigration enforcement throughout the Southland in the moments following the raids.

“As Mayor of a proud city of immigrants, who contribute to our city in so many ways, I am deeply angered by what has taken place,” Bass said. “These tactics sow terror in our communities and disrupt basic principles of safety in our city. My Office is in close coordination with immigrant rights community organizations. We will not stand for this.”

In response to that statement, White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller posted on X that Bass has “no say in this at all.”

“Federal law is supreme and federal law will be enforced,” he said. Miller has previously said the Trump administration was “actively looking at” suspending the writ of habeas corpus in immigration cases. Suspending the writ of habeas corpus in those cases would effectively remove the right for individuals accused of entering the country illegally to appear in court before confinement.

On Friday, Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said the department would not cooperate with federal authorities in deportation efforts, a sentiment that L.A. County Sheriff Robert Luna later echoed on behalf of his department. They both reiterated that point on Saturday in separate statements as the demonstrations continued.

Todd Lyons, the acting ICE Director, shared a statement on Saturday about Friday’s events, saying that federal agents were in the area to arrest criminals and people who were in the country illegally.

“What took place in Los Angeles yesterday was appalling. As rioters attacked federal ICE and law enforcement officers on the LA streets, Mayor Bass took the side of chaos and lawlessness over law enforcement,” his statement read, in part. “Our brave officers were vastly outnumbered, as over 1,000 rioters surrounded and attacked a federal building. It took over two hours for the Los Angeles Police Department to respond, despite being called multiple times.”

, , and contributed to this report.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth warned that ‘active duty Marines’ were on ‘high alert’ as roving mobs of violent thugs created havoc on the streets of Los Angeles.

Hegseth made the bold threat after President Trump ordered 2,000 National Guard troops to descend on the city in an effort to quell days-long chaos amid ICE raids targeting illegal migrants.

‘The violent mob assaults on ICE and Federal Law Enforcement are designed to prevent the removal of Criminal Illegal Aliens from our soil… and a huge NATIONAL SECURITY RISK,’ Hegseth wrote on X.

‘If violence continues, active duty Marines at Camp Pendleton will also be mobilized — they are on high alert.’

The Los Angeles Police Department also responded on Saturday night by warning rioters that the use of non-lethal munitions has been authorized.

‘The Incident Commander has authorized the use of less lethal munitions to be deployed,’ the LAPD Central Division wrote on X, urging people to ‘leave the area’ as non-lethal weapons ‘can cause pain and discomfort.’

The threats to use force came as activists set cars on fire and threw rocks and flaming projectiles at the authorities.

‘We are going to bring the National Guard in tonight,’ Tom Homan, President Trump’s point man on border security, said on Fox News on Saturday evening.

‘We are making Los Angeles safer. Mayor (Karen) Bass should be thanking us.’

But California Governor Gavin Newsom suggested the Trump administration was deliberately inflaming the situation and sending the National Guard would only make matters worse.

A car burns in flames during a standoff between police and protesters following multiple detentions by ICE in the Los Angeles County city of Paramount, California

California Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, suggested the Trump administration was deliberately inflaming the situation in order to justify sending in the National Guard

Shortly afterwards Trump himself posted from his Truth Social warning Mayor Bass and California Governor Gavis Newsom to take charge of the situation

‘The federal government is moving to take over the California National Guard and deploy 2,000 soldiers. That move is purposefully inflammatory and will only escalate tensions,’ Newsom tweeted. ‘This is the wrong mission and will erode public trust.’

Minutes later, Trump himself warned Newsom and Mayor Bass to take charge of the situation in a post on his Truth Social.

‘If Governor Gavin Newscum, of California, and Mayor Karen Bass, of Los Angeles, can’t do their jobs, which everyone knows they can’t, then the Federal Government will step in and solve the problem, RIOTS & LOOTERS, the way it should be solved!!!’, Trump wrote.

Federal agents clashed with angry protestors in the Los Angeles area for a second day Saturday, shooting flash-bang grenades into the crowd just after 4pm, shutting part of a freeway amid raids on undocumented migrants.

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

They were met by federal agents in riot gear and gas masks. The mob was warned to leave in both Spanish and English.

Tear gas and smoke filled the air as confrontations between immigration authorities and demonstrators extended into a second day with top Trump administration officials vowed to prosecute anyone who interferes with enforcement.

The agents appeared to include members of Border Patrol, the US Marshals Service and Homeland Security Investigations.

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By Saturday night federal agents reported having arrested more than a dozen ‘agitators who impeded agents in their ability to conduct law enforcement operations.’

In his Fox News interview, Homan said those arrested included child sex offenders, gang members and national security threats.

‘They arrested a lot of bad people yesterday and today,’ Homan asserted. ‘We’re making Los Angeles safer.’

Homan also remarked that ICE agents were often wearing masks as they conducted raids because they were worried about their families being doxxed.

Border Patrol personnel in riot gear and gas masks stood guard outside an industrial park in Paramount, deploying tear gas as bystanders and protesters gathered on medians and across the street.

Some jeered at officers while recording the events on smartphones.

‘Now they know that they cannot go to anywhere in this country where our people are, and try to kidnap our workers, our people – they cannot do that without an organized and fierce resistance,’ said protester Ron Gochez, 44.

‘ICE out of Paramount. We see you for what you are,’ a woman said through a megaphone. ‘You are not welcome here.’

One handheld sign read, ‘No Human Being is Illegal.’

On Saturday, amid chants for ICE agents to get out, some protestors waved Mexican flags while others set a US flag on fire.

Federal agents hold a line during a clash with protesters near a Home Depot after a raid was conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Paramount, California on Saturday

A Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputy holds back protesters following multiple detentions by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), in the Los Angeles County city of Paramount

Trump’s border czar Tom Homan has said the National Guard is mobilizing to enter the city of Los Angeles within hours amid tense standoffs between protesters and ICE agents

Cement blocks and overturned shopping carts from Home Depot served as crude roadblocks.

A crowd swarmed a US Marshals Service bus exiting a nearby freeway, with authorities later closing on and off ramps to keep protesters from taking over the highway.

Smoke rose from burning shrubbery and refuse in the street, and demonstrators kicked at a Border Patrol vehicle.

A boulevard was closed to traffic as Border Patrol agents circulated through the area.

Paramount Mayor Peggy Lemons said she was not informed about the Home Depot raid in advance. She urged the crowd to stay calm to avoid violence.

She said the Department of Homeland Security was deliberately targeting Home Depots across the county in search of undocumented residents.

‘We don’t know what was happening, or what their target was. To think that there would be no heightening of fear and no consequences from the community doesn’t sound like good preparation to me,’ she told the LA Times.

‘Above all, there is no communication and things are done on a whim. And that creates chaos and fear.’

In a statement on Saturday about the protests in Paramount, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office said: ‘It appeared that federal law enforcement officers were in the area, and that members of the public were gathering to protest.’

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem posted a message on social media addressing ‘LA rioters’ and warning that interference with immigration enforcement will not be tolerated.

‘You will not stop us or slow us down,’ Noem said on the X platform. Immigration and Customs Enforcement ‘will enforce the law. And if you lay a hand on a law enforcement officer, you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.’

The immigration raids are part of Trump’s ongoing crackdown on undocumented immigrants.

A pallet burns as protesters and federal agents clash near a Home Depot in Paramount

Protesters run through tear gas fired by federal agents after a raid was conducted by ICE

A federal agent points their projectile gun at protesters during a clash

Police detain a man during a protest in the Paramount section of Los Angeles

Border Patrol personnel deploy tear gas during a demonstration over the dozens detained in an operation by federal immigration authorities a day earlier in Paramount

Following the latest clashes in Los Angeles, authorities vowed to prosecute offenders and warned of an escalating security presence.

Trump was elected to a second term largely on a promise to crack down hard on the entry and presence of undocumented migrants who he likened to ‘monsters’ and ‘animals.’

Following the latest clashes in Los Angeles, authorities vowed to prosecute offenders and warned of an escalating security presence.

FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino said multiple arrests had been made following Friday’s clashes.

‘You bring chaos, and we’ll bring handcuffs. Law and order will prevail,’ he said on X.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers executed search warrants at multiple locations Friday, including outside a clothing warehouse in the fashion district.

The action came after a judge found probable cause that the employer was using fictitious documents for some of its workers, according to representatives for Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Attorney´s Office.

A tense scene unfolded outside as a crowd tried to block agents from driving away.

A protester holds a Mexican flag during a clash with federal agents. It comes the day after federal immigration authorities arrested more than 40 people across Los Angeles

A protester holds a sign as he stands in front of federal agents as the groups clashed near a Home Depot following a raid

The palm tree-lined streets of Los Angeles was set ablaze by protestors

Advocates for immigrants’ rights said there were also migration detentions outside Home Depot stores and a doughnut shop.

DHS said in a statement that recent ICE operations in Los Angeles resulted in the arrest of 118 immigrants.

Following the Friday arrests, protesters gathered in the evening outside a federal detention center, chanting, ‘Set them free, let them stay!’

Some held signs with anti-ICE slogans, and some some scrawled graffiti on the building.

‘An insurrection against the laws and sovereignty of the United States,’ White House deputy chief of staff and anti-immigration hardliner Stephen Miller said on X, sharing a video of protesters marching Friday outside Los Angeles’s federal detention center.

Trump has pledged to deport record numbers of people in the country illegally and lock down the US-Mexico border, with the White House setting a goal for ICE to arrest at least 3,000 migrants per day.

But the sweeping immigration crackdown has also included people legally residing in the country, including some with permanent residence, and has led to legal challenges.

Television news footage earlier on Friday showed caravans of unmarked military-style vehicles and vans loaded with uniformed federal agents streaming through Los Angeles streets as part of the immigration enforcement operation.

The LAPD did not take part in the immigration enforcement. It was deployed to quell civil unrest after crowds protesting the deportation raids spray-painted anti-ICE slogans on the walls of a federal court building and gathered outside a nearby jail where some of the detainees were reportedly being held.

A woman waves a Mexican flag amidst tear gas from law enforcement during a protest

A protester breaks windows on a car during a clash with federal agents

Protesters run through tear gas fired by federal agents

A protester holds a Mexican flag during a clash with federal agents near a Home Depot

Mayor Karen Bass condemned the immigration raids in a statement on Friday.

‘I am deeply angered by what has taken place,’ Bass said. ‘These tactics sow terror in our communities and disrupt basic principles of safety in our city. We will not stand for this.’

In response, ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons chided Bass for the city’s response to the protests.

‘Mayor Bass took the side of chaos and lawlessness over law enforcement,’ Lyons said. ‘Make no mistake, ICE will continue to enforce our nation’s immigration laws and arrest criminal illegal aliens.’

The Department of Homeland Security also criticized Democratic politicians including Mayor Bass, saying their anti-ICE rhetoric was contributing to violence against immigration agents.

‘From comparisons to the modern-day Nazi gestapo to glorifying rioters, the violent rhetoric of these sanctuary politicians is beyond the pale. This violence against ICE must end,’ said DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin.

Among those arrested at the protests was David Huerta, regional president of the Service Employees International Union. Justice Department spokesperson Ciaran McEvoy confirmed that he was being held Saturday at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles ahead of a scheduled Monday court appearance.

Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called for his immediate release. In a social media post, he cited a ‘disturbing pattern of arresting and detaining American citizens for exercising their right to free speech.’

Los Angeles, the second-most populous city in the United States, is one of the most diverse metropolises in the country.

The suburb of Paramount, home to about 50,000 people, is 82 percent Hispanic or Latino, according to US Census data.

Summary Border czar says National Guard to deploy on Saturday evening

Vance calls protesters ‘insurrectionists’

Two US officials say Trump has not invoked Insurrection Act

At least 44 migrants arrested Friday on immigration violations

LOS ANGELES, June 7 (Reuters) – President Donald Trump’s administration said it would deploy 2,000 National Guard troops on Saturday as federal agents in Los Angeles faced off against a few hundred demonstrators during a second day of protests following immigration raids.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth warned that the Pentagon was prepared to mobilize active-duty troops “if violence continues” in Los Angeles, saying the Marines at nearby Camp Pendleton were “on high alert.”

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Federal security agents on Saturday confronted protesters in the Paramount area in southeast Los Angeles, where some demonstrators displayed Mexican flags. A second protest in downtown Los Angeles on Saturday night attracted some 60 people, who chanted slogans including “ICE out of L.A.!”

Trump signed a presidential memorandum to deploy the National Guard troops to “address the lawlessness that has been allowed to fester,” the White House said in a statement. Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, told Fox News that the National Guard would be deployed in Los Angeles on Saturday.

California Governor Gavin Newsom called the decision “purposefully inflammatory.” He posted on X that Trump was deploying the National Guard “not because there is a shortage of law enforcement, but because they want a spectacle,” adding: “Don’t give them one. Never use violence. Speak out peacefully.”

Newsom said it was “deranged behavior” for Hegseth to be “threatening to deploy active-duty Marines on American soil against its own citizens.”

Trump posted on his Truth Social platform that if Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass can’t do their jobs “then the Federal Government will step in and solve the problem, RIOTS & LOOTERS, the way it should be solved!!!”

The protests pit Democratic-run Los Angeles, where census data suggests a significant portion of the population is Hispanic and foreign-born, against Trump’s Republican White House, which has made cracking down on immigration a hallmark of his second term.

‘VIOLENT INSURRECTION’

“Insurrectionists carrying foreign flags are attacking immigration enforcement officers, while one half of America’s political leadership has decided that border enforcement is evil,” Vice President JD Vance posted on X late on Saturday.

Senior White House aide Stephen Miller, an immigration hardliner, described the protests as a “violent insurrection.”

The administration has not invoked the Insurrection Act, two U.S. officials told Reuters on condition of anonymity. One said that National Guard troops can deploy quickly, within 24 hours in some cases, and that the military was working to source the 2,000 troops.

The 1807 law empowers a president to deploy the U.S. military to enforce the law and suppress events like civil disorder. The last time it was invoked was during the 1992 Los Angeles riots at the request of the California governor.

Video footage of the Paramount protest showed dozens of green-uniformed security personnel with gas masks at the Paramount protest, lined up on a road strewn with overturned shopping carts as small canisters exploded into gas clouds. Authorities began detaining some protesters, according to Reuters witnesses.

Item 1 of 11 A car burns on Atlantic Boulevard during a standoff by protesters and law enforcement, following multiple detentions by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), in the Los Angeles County city of Paramount, California, U.S., June 7, 2025. REUTERS/Barbara Davidson [1/11] A car burns on Atlantic Boulevard during a standoff by protesters and law enforcement, following multiple detentions by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), in the Los Angeles County city of Paramount, California, U.S., June 7, 2025. REUTERS/Barbara Davidson Purchase Licensing Rights , opens new tab

Los Angeles police posted on X that “multiple people have been detained for failing to disperse after multiple warnings were issued.” It did not give further details.

There was no official information of any arrests.

“Now they know that they cannot go to anywhere in this country where our people are, and try to kidnap our workers, our people – they cannot do that without an organized and fierce resistance,” said protester Ron Gochez, 44.

A first round of protests kicked off on Friday night after Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents conducted enforcement operations in the city and arrested at least 44 people on alleged immigration violations.

The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that there were about “1,000 rioters” at the protests on Friday.

Reuters could not verify DHS’s account. Angelica Salas, executive director of immigrants’ rights organization Chirla, said lawyers had not had access to those detained on Friday, which she called “very worrying.”

TRUMP’S IMMIGRATION CRACKDOWN

Trump has pledged to deport record numbers of people in the country illegally and lock down the U.S.-Mexico border, with the White House setting a goal for ICE to arrest at least 3,000 migrants per day.

But the sweeping immigration crackdown has also caught up people legally residing in the country, including some with permanent residence, and has led to legal challenges.

ICE, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Los Angeles Police Department did not respond to requests for comment on the protests or whether there had been any immigration raids on Saturday.

Television news footage on Friday showed unmarked vehicles resembling military transport and vans loaded with uniformed federal agents streaming through Los Angeles streets as part of the immigration enforcement operation.

Raids occurred around Home Depot stores, where street vendors and day laborers were picked up, as well as at a garment factory and a warehouse, Salas of Chirla said.

Bass, the mayor of Los Angeles, condemned the immigration raids.

“I am deeply angered by what has taken place,” Bass said in a statement. “These tactics sow terror in our communities and disrupt basic principles of safety in our city. We will not stand for this.”

Reporting by Sandra Stojanovic and Omar Younis; Additional reporting by Lucia Mutikani, Alexandra Ulmer, Michael Martina and Idrees Ali; Writing by Alexandra Ulmer and Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Diane Craft, Deepa Babington, Michelle Nichols and William Mallard

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Protests erupt in LA’s largely Latino neighborhoods following ICE raids on undocumented workers.

By Eric Thayer / Morgan Lee / Michelle L. Price

PARAMOUNT, Calif. (AP) — President Donald Trump is deploying 2,000 California National Guard troops to Los Angeles over the objections of Gov. Gavin Newsom after a second day of clashes between hundreds of protesters and federal immigration authorities in riot gear.

Sporadic confrontations broke out again Saturday in the heavily Latino satellite city of Paramount, south of Los Angeles. Agents unleashed tear gas, flash-bang explosives and pepper balls, and protesters hurled rocks and cement at Border Patrol patrol vehicles. Smoke wafted from small piles of burning refuse in the streets.

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Tensions were high after a series sweeps by immigration authorities the previous day in LA’s fashion district and other locations, as the weeklong tally of immigrant arrests climbed past 100 and a prominent union leader was arrested while protesting and accused of impeding law enforcement.

The White House announced in a statement that Trump would deploy the Guard to “address the lawlessness that has been allowed to fester.”

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

In a signal of the administration’s aggressive approach, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth threatened in a post on X to deploy the U.S. military.

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A car burns during a protest in Compton, Calif., Saturday, June 7, 2025, after federal immigration authorities conducted operations. (AP Photo/Eric Thayer)

“If violence continues, active-duty Marines at Camp Pendleton will also be mobilized — they are on high alert,” Hegseth said.

Trump’s order came after morning and afternoon clashes had died down in Paramount and neighboring Compton, where a car was set fire.

At the entrance to a business park, across from the back of a Home Depot, immigration officers faced off with demonstrators who set off fireworks and pulled shopping carts into the street, broke up cinder blocks and pelted a procession of Border Patrol vans as they departed and careened down a boulevard.

Paramount Mayor Peggy Lemons told multiple news outlets that no immigration raids took place in her city and demonstrators appeared to respond to possible preparations federal agents outside Homeland Security Department facilities.

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Protesters confront law enforcement agents outside an industrial park in Paramount, Calif., on Saturday, June 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Eric Thayer)

“They’re just frightened,” Lemons said. “And when you handle things the way that this appears to be handled, it’s not a surprise that chaos would follow.”

In other clashes demonstrators kicked at a Border Patrol sedan, and Los Angeles County officers also deployed flash-bangs.

Law enforcement personnel and protesters mostly stayed at a distance, kicking tear gas cannisters back and forth amid streams of white gas. Among several hundred protesters, a handful were bloodied by projectiles.

More than a dozen people were arrested and accused of impeding immigration agents, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, which the names and mug shots of some of those arrested on social media.

Trump federalized part of California’s National Guard under what is known as Title 10 authority, which places him, not the governor, atop the chain of command, according to Newsom’s office.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement that the work the immigration authorities were doing when met with protests is “essential to halting and reversing the invasion of illegal criminals into the United States. In the wake of this violence, California’s feckless Democrat leaders have completely abdicated their responsibility to protect their citizens.”

The president’s move came shortly after he issued a threat on his social media network saying that if Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass did not “do their jobs,” then “the Federal Government will step in and solve the problem, RIOTS & LOOTERS, the way it should be solved!!!”

Trump signed the order shortly before he went to attend a UFC fight in New Jersey, where he sat ringside with boxer Mike Tyson.

Newsom said in his statement that local authorities “are able to access law enforcement assistance at a moment’s notice,” and “there is currently no unmet need.”

“This is the wrong mission and will erode public trust,” he added.

In Paramount, some demonstrators jeered at officers while recording the events on smartphones.

“ICE out of Paramount. We see you for what you are,” a woman said through a megaphone. “You are not welcome here.”

One handheld sign read, “No Human Being is Illegal.”

Protests continued into the evening in the city, where more than 80% of residents identify themselves as Latino. Several hundred demonstrators gathered near a doughnut shop, and authorities held up barbed wire to keep the crowd back. Flash-bangs went off, some protesters stared fires and the smell of chemical irritants was in the air.

The California Highway Patrol said Newsom directed it to deploy additional officers to “maintain public safety.”

In 2020, Trump asked governors of several states to deploy their National Guard troops to Washington, D.C., to quell protests after George Floyd was killed by Minneapolis police. Many agreed and sent troops.

Trump also threatened at the time to invoke the Insurrection Act for those protests — an intervention rarely seen in modern American history. But then-Defense Secretary Mark Esper pushed back, saying the law should be invoked “only in the most urgent and dire of situations.”

Police detain a man during a protest in Paramount, Calif., Saturday, June 7, 2025, after federal immigration authorities conducted operations. (AP Photo/Eric Thayer)

Trump did not invoke the act during his first term, and he did not do so Saturday, according to Leavitt and Newsom.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers executed search warrants at multiple locations Friday, including outside a clothing warehouse in the fashion district. The action came after a judge found probable cause that the employer was using fictitious documents for some of its workers, according to representatives for Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

DHS said in a statement that recent ICE operations in Los Angeles resulted in the arrest of 118 immigrants, including five people linked to criminal organizations and people with prior criminal histories.

Among those arrested at protests Friday was David Huerta, regional president of the Service Employees International Union. The Justice Department confirmed that he was being held Saturday at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles ahead of a scheduled Monday court appearance.

It was not clear whether Huerta had legal representation.

Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called for his immediate release, warning of a “disturbing pattern of arresting and detaining American citizens for exercising their right to free speech.”

Mayor Bass said the crackdown was meant to “sow terror” in her city.

ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons chided her for LA’s response to the protests.

“Mayor Bass took the side of chaos and lawlessness over law enforcement,” Lyons said in a statement. “Make no mistake, ICE will continue to enforce our nation’s immigration laws and arrest criminal illegal aliens.”

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Lee reported from Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Price from Bridgewater, New Jersey. Associated Press writers Zeke Miller and Eric Tucker in Washington and Rebecca Boone in Boise, Idaho, contributed.