President Donald Trump says he has deployed 2,000 California National Guard personnel in Los Angeles to respond to immigration protests over California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s objection.
It’s not the first time Trump has revitalized the National Guard to quell the protests. In 2020, he asked governors of several states to send troops to Washington, D.C. to respond to the demonstrations that occurred after Minneapolis police officers killed George Floyd. Many of the governors he asked agreed and sent troops into the Federal District. The governor, who refused the request, was allowed to do so, and kept the troops in their home soil.
However, this time Trump is acting against Newsom. Newsom will take control and command of the California National Guard under normal circumstances. Trump said the military needs to be federated to “dealize lawlessness” in California, but the Democratic governor said the move is “deliberately inflammatory and only intensifies tension.”
There are a few things you need to know about when and how the president can deploy his troops in the US soil.
The law is a bit vague
Generally, federal forces are not permitted to carry out civil law enforcement obligations to US citizens except in emergencies.
The 18th century wartime law, known as the Rebellion Act, is the main legal mechanism that presidents can use to activate the military or national guard during times of rebellion and unrest. But Trump did not invoke the Rebellion Act on Saturday.
Instead, he relied on similar federal laws that allowed the president to turn federal forces into federal government under certain circumstances.
The National Guard is a hybrid entity that serves state and federal interests. They are often operated under state command and control using state funds. National Guard forces may be allocated by states to serve federal missions, and are under state command, but use federal funds.
The law cited by Trump’s declaration places National Guard troops under federal command. The law says it can be done under three circumstances: When the United States is invaded or at risk of an invasion. If there is a risk of rebellion or rebellion against the authority of the US government, or if the president is unable to “enforce US laws” with ordinary forces.
However, the law also states that orders for these purposes are “issued through the governor of the state.” It is not immediately clear whether the president can activate the National Guard without the orders of the state governor.
The role of the National Guard is limited
In particular, Trump’s declaration says that National Guard forces play a supportive role by protecting ice officers in enforcement, rather than enforcing law enforcement.
Steve Vladeck, a professor at Georgetown University Law Center, specializes in military justice and national security law, says that it is because the National Guard forces cannot legally engage in normal law enforcement activities unless Trump first invites rebellion laws.
Vladeck said the move poses a risk that the military can use its forces while fulfilling its “protective” role. The move could also be a pioneer in the deployment of other more aggressive military forces, he wrote on the website.
“There is nothing that these troops are allowed to do that. For example, the ice officers who were directed to these protests were unable to do their own thing,” Vladek wrote.
The military has been mobilized previously
Riot Act and related laws were used during the civil rights era to protect activists and students separating schools. President Dwight Eisenhower sent the 101st Airborne to Little Rock, Arkansas, protecting black students who integrated Central High School after the governor of that state revitalised the National Guard and kept students out.
George H.W. Bush responded to the riots in 1992 after being acquitted by a white police officer who beat the black driver Rodney King in 1992.
National Guards are deployed for a variety of emergencies, including Covid Pandemic, Hurricanes and other natural disasters. However, these deployments are generally implemented by agreement of the governor of the corresponding state.
Trump is willing to use his military in his hometown soil
In 2020, Trump asked governors of several states to deploy National Guard troops in Washington, D.C. to quell the protests that arose after Minneapolis police officers killed George Floyd. Many of the governors agreed to send troops to the Federal District.
At the time, Trump also threatened to invoke the Rebellion Act for protests after Floyd’s death in Minneapolis. But then defensive secretary Mark Esper said the law should be called “only in the most urgent and dire circumstances.”
Trump never evoked the Rebellion Act during his first term.
However, during his second campaign, he suggested that it would change. Trump told Iowa audiences in 2023 that he was prevented from using the military to curb violence in cities and states during his first term, and told him, “I’m not waiting” if the issue reappears the next semester.
Trump has also committed to deploying the National Guard to implement immigration targets, and his top advisor, Stephen Miller, explained how it will be done.
After Trump announced Saturday that he was federating the National Guard, Defense Secretary Pete Hegses said other measures would continue.
Hegseth wrote on social media platform X that active Marines from Camp Pendleton are highly vigilant and will be mobilized “if violence continues.”
