Trump sends in troops: National Guard deployed to LA as immigration riots rage | WATCH

The Trump administration is sending 2,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles as immigration-related protests stretch into a second day, prompting a clash between federal and state leaders over the response to the unrest.

California Governor Gavin Newsom confirmed the deployment Saturday, following a day of escalating tensions as local police clashed with demonstrators using tear gas, stun guns, and riot shields. Protests erupted Friday near the Los Angeles Federal Building after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents conducted a series of raids in the area.

By Saturday, around 400 protesters gathered in Paramount, a city south of Los Angeles, according to the county sheriff. While the crowd thinned to dozens later in the day, tensions remained high.

Governor Newsom criticized the federal government’s response, accusing it of intentionally fueling unrest. “The federal government is sowing chaos so they can have an excuse to escalate,” he wrote on X. “That is not the way any civilized country behaves.”

President Donald Trump fired back on his social media platform, Truth Social, writing: “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 later announced that masks would no longer be permitted at demonstrations, calling them a “cover for chaos.”

Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said active duty Marines could be called in if violence continues. “We will not allow lawlessness to take root,” he warned.