U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) posted a Tuesday photo touting the use of National Guard soldiers in Los Angeles following large scale immigration protests.
Two police officers could be seen handcuffing a man while soldiers stood at bay with weapons in hand. Both groups of law enforcement wore bullet proof vests.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also posted the image from a different angle and wrote, “This We’ll Defend.”
President Trump deployed thousands of National Guard soldiers in Los Angeles on Saturday to quell growing demonstrations throughout the city. Protestors were objecting to local ICE raids,. and while many of the protests were peaceful, people also defaced federal buildings, set cars on fire and looted Los Angeles businesses.
The president said he overrode California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s (D) choice not to deploy soldiers because the chain of events had gotten out of hand.
“If our troops didn’t go into Los Angeles, it would be burning to the ground right now, just like so much of their housing burned to the ground,” Trump wrote in a Wednesday post on Truth Social, referencing Los Angeles wildfires earlier this year.
“The great people of Los Angeles are very lucky that I made the decision to go in and help!!!” he added.
However, Newsom said the response was inflammatory.
“He chose theatrics over public safety – he federalized another 2,000 Guard members. He deployed more than 700 active U.S. Marines. These are men and women trained in foreign combat, not domestic law enforcement,” Newsom said in a Tuesday video address slamming Trump.
“We honor their service. We honor their bravery. But we do not want our streets militarized by our own Armed Forces. Not in L.A. Not in California. Not anywhere,” he added.
In response to violent protests, Mayor Karen Bass (D-Calif.) has issued a curfew for Downtown Los Angeles from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. while 100 National Guard soldiers are stationed outside the federal building downtown and another 100 were sent to a federal building in the Westwood neighborhood.
Soldiers cannot arrest people but can briefly detain them for safety purposes.
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