US President Donald Trump has mobilized Marines and National Guard troops in Los Angeles in response to ongoing immigration protests – a move that has drawn sharp condemnation from California governor Gavin Newsom, ignited a legal showdown, and sparked protests across the country. But behind the scenes, Trump and his team are reportedly thrilled.“We couldn’t have scripted this better,” a senior White House official told Politico, echoing the prevailing belief within Trump’s inner circle that the LA chaos has handed the president a political gift: law-and-order optics, a fresh Democratic foil in Newsom, and a narrative shift away from recent controversies.Why it matters
- The LA crackdown offers Trump a stage to replay a script that worked for him in past campaigns – using images of unrest, foreign flags, and graffiti-covered buildings to argue that Democrats are incapable of maintaining order. His administration believes the more Democrats protest his methods, the stronger his standing becomes with voters who want decisive action on immigration.
- “What you’re witnessing in California is a full-blown assault on peace, on public order and on national sovereignty,” Trump declared at Fort Bragg, justifying the military mobilization. “We will liberate Los Angeles.”
- The scenes from LA – curfews, fires, looting, and masked protesters waving Mexican flags – are being used by the administration to fuel its hardline immigration messaging and paint Democratic leaders as dangerously permissive.
The big picture
- Troops on the streets: About 700 active-duty Marines and 4,000 National Guard troops have been dispatched to Los Angeles, despite strong objections from state and local officials. Photos show Marines in riot gear practicing crowd control tactics in Seal Beach.
- Protests multiply: What started as local backlash to
ICE raids in LA has spread to cities including New York, Chicago, and Austin. Demonstrators are calling for the abolition of ICE and an end to mass deportations. While mostly peaceful, some protests have led to arrests and confrontations. - State of emergency: LA Mayor Karen Bass imposed a curfew in parts of downtown after 23 businesses were looted. Nearly 200 protesters were arrested on Tuesday alone.
- The federal deployment – ordered without California’s consent – marks the first such presidential override since the civil rights clashes of the 1960s.
What they’re saying
- Trump has been unequivocal in linking immigration, crime, and civil unrest. “This anarchy will not stand,” he said Tuesday, again calling protesters “animals” and invoking the specter of a foreign invasion. At Fort Bragg, he told troops: “Generations of Army heroes did not shed their blood on distant shores only to watch our country be destroyed by third-world lawlessness.”
- Governor Newsom, meanwhile, struck back forcefully. “Democracy is under assault,” he said in a televised address. “This brazen abuse of power by a sitting president inflamed a combustible situation… He chose escalation. He chose theatrics over public safety.”
- California has filed suit against the Trump administration, arguing that the military deployment is illegal and infringes on state sovereignty. State Attorney General Rob Bonta warned that allowing federal troops to accompany ICE agents “could violate the Posse Comitatus Act,” which bars the use of federal troops in civilian law enforcement.
- “Come and get me, tough guy,” Newsom posted on X, after Trump allies floated arresting him for obstructing immigration enforcement.
Between the linesWhile the crisis has inflamed tensions, it has also provided both Trump and Newsom with powerful platforms to energize their political bases.Trump, less than five months into his second term, is capitalizing on the chaos to bolster his tough-on-immigration image. Footage of protests spiraling into confrontations is being repackaged for campaign-style messaging. The optics – Mexican flags, broken windows, masked demonstrators – serve his core political narrative.“This is exactly the kind of fight that Donald Trump loves,” GOP strategist Whit Ayres told the Wall Street Journal. “His opponents carrying foreign flags past burning cars – it’s political gold for him.”Newsom, widely seen as a top Democratic contender for 2028, is leaning into the standoff to present himself as a bulwark against authoritarianism. “We are suing Donald Trump,” Newsom said. “This is a manufactured crisis. He is creating fear and terror to take over a state militia and violate the US Constitution.”Zoom out
- This conflict isn’t just about LA. It’s part of a broader strategy by the Trump administration to reassert federal dominance over Democratic states – particularly on immigration. Officials close to Trump view this as a test case for future crackdowns in other blue cities.
- Saturday’s “No Kings Day” protests – set to coincide with Trump’s 79th birthday and a planned military parade in Washington – are expected to spark further unrest. Trump has already warned that demonstrators at the parade “will be met with very big force.”
- Homeland security secretary Kristi Noem said ICE operations will intensify in response to the protests, and ICE posted images of National Guard troops accompanying agents during recent raids.
- “ICE will continue to enforce the law,” Noem posted Tuesday.
The danger of escalationWhile the political class wages its proxy war, Los Angeles simmers. On Tuesday, Mayor Karen Bass imposed a nighttime curfew on a one-square-mile stretch of downtown after 23 businesses were looted the previous night. Police arrested 197 people-more than double the total arrests from earlier days.But Bass and other city leaders have been careful to separate peaceful protesters from criminal opportunists. “When these peaceful rallies end… another element moves in: opportunists,” Council member Ysabel Jurado said.Local police and sheriffs insist they can handle the unrest. Retired Major General Randy Manner agrees: “The risk does not justify the investment of these forces, and it will negatively impact readiness,” he told The Atlantic. Others warn the involvement of active-duty troops trained for combat-not crowd control-is dangerous.“This is not Fallujah,” said Mark Cancian, a retired Marine colonel. “This is Los Angeles.”What’s next Legal showdown: California’s lawsuit against the deployment heads to federal court. Legal scholars warn that Trump’s use of emergency powers may stretch constitutional limits. Political fallout: Trump’s messaging is dominating the news cycle, pushing aside recent headlines about Elon Musk’s fallout with the administration and debate over Medicaid cuts. But risks remain – a single incident involving troops and civilians could shift public sentiment sharply.The bottom lineTrump believes he’s winning the LA standoff – not by calming the unrest, but by dramatizing it. The cycle of protest, confrontation, and crackdown plays directly into his law-and-order platform and reframes the national debate around immigration and security.His opponents see authoritarian overreach. His supporters see leadership. And the president himself sees political momentum. “If they spit,” Trump said of protesters confronting Guard troops, “we will hit.”(With inputs from agencies)