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Nearly two months after President Trump took the extraordinary measures to quell the immigrant attacks by deploying the National Guard in Los Angeles. The Pentagon announced Wednesday it had withdrawn more than 1,000 troops.
The departure of about 1,350 members of the National Guard ordered by Defense Secretary Pete Hegses represents the latest rollback of the military this month as more than 5,000 National Guard members and Marines were deployed to the city in June.
About 250 California security members will remain in LA, Pentagon chief spokesman Sean Parnell said federal agents and buildings will be protected.
“We are extremely grateful for the support of the over 5,000 security guards and Marines who mobilized to Los Angeles to protect federal functions against the rampaging lawlessness that is happening in the city,” Parnell said in a statement.
Mayor Karen Bass, who called the deployment a “armed profession,” quickly celebrated the military’s departure.
“Another victory for Los Angeles,” Bass told X on Wednesday night. “We’ll continue this pressure until all the troops leave LA.”
The presence of the military in Los Angeles and their role in protecting federal agents carrying out immigrant raids were heavily contested. President Trump said the military was necessary to maintain order as the administration stepped up immigrant raids, protesters covered graffiti downtown buildings, set Waymos on fire, and clashed with immigrants and customs enforcement agents.
But many of California’s leading Democratic leaders said there is no need for federal forces in the city. Local law enforcement agencies can handle protesters, they said, and the presence of federal forces in highly militarized gear in the area was only inflamed. They also alleged that federal officials illegally deployed troops.
A day after the first convoy of the National Guard forces shocked LA on June 8, Gov. Gavin Newsom sued federal officials, saying the deployment went beyond federal authorities and violated the 10th Amendment of the “unprecedented seizing” of state power. Newsom also appealed that the deployment would divert the California State Guard from key obligations such as fighting wildfires and disrupting drug trafficking across the US-Mexico border and across California.
His office issued a statement on Thursday responding to the latest drawdown.
“President Trump is aware that his political theatre backfired. This militarization has always been unnecessary and has been deeply unpopular,” the statement said. “The President must do the right thing to end this illegal militarization because of the dire economic and social impact. The women and men of our military are more than they use as props for the federal government’s propaganda machine.”
Over the weeks, the LA protests settled down, and the military didn’t play a clear role and many seemed bored. By July, a source in Newsom’s office with knowledge of military operations told The Times that only about 3% of the military were taking part in daily missions.
“There’s not much to do,” one Marine told The Times while standing guard earlier this month outside the Wilshire Federal Building in Westwood.
Most of the National Guard members were primarily crushing the joint military training base in Los Aramitos through operations estimated by the Pentagon.
On July 15, the Pentagon retracted nearly 2,000 California National Guard soldiers from LA, and on July 21, 700 active Marines.
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