Homeland Security seeks weapons, drones for LA immigration crackdown
WASHINGTON —The Department of Homeland Security has asked the Pentagon for help in transporting weapons from Fort Benning in Georgia and another site in Wyoming to Los Angeles, where its immigration crackdown has become increasingly militarized.
The request came Monday after President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered thousands of National Guard troops and 700 active-duty Marines to Los Angeles over the objection of California Gov. Gavin Newsom. Trump and Hegseth said the troops are needed to restore order, protect federal buildings and law enforcement officials arresting and deporting migrants in the United States illegally.
The request from Homeland Security, confirmed by a Defense official, also seeks 'drone surveillance support,' direction to troops on detaining or arresting 'lawbreakers,' and graduates from an organization like the Marines' School of Advanced Warfighting School for setting up a joint operation center.
It's unclear what type of weapons Homeland Security officials are seeking for their immigration crackdown in California. Also unclear: who would use them and who they would be used against.
Pentagon officials are reviewing the request, according to the official who was not authorized to speak publicly. The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment on its request.
On Wednesday, Sen. Jack Reed, D-Rhode Island, asked Hegseth if he would authorize drones and the use of 'military forces to detain or arrest American citizens.' Reed is a member of the Senate Defense Approprations subcommittee and the top Democrat on the Armed Services Committee.
Hegseth did not answer directly, saying, 'Senator, every authorization we've provided, the National Guard, and the Marines in Los Angeles is under the authority of the president of the United States. Is lawful and constitutional.'
Active-duty troops are generally barred by federal law from participating in law enforcement operations, based on century's old tradition separating the military from domestic policing. There is an exception under the Insurrection Act that allows the president to use the military to put down an internal rebellion. National Guard troops have fewer restrictions.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials are carrying out a directive from Trump to find immigrants living in the United States without legal status. Protests have sprung up against the sweeps the agency is carrying out in various neighborhoods.
News that Homeland Security officials want ammunition, drones and combat expertise follows another request it made of the Pentagon. That one seeks for the first time more than 20,000 National Guard troops for their 'support of interior immigration enforcement operations.' That could put Guardsmen far from the southern border -- where they have supported enforcement operations for years -- and thrust them into center of the administration's crackdown on illegal immigration in American cities.
"DHS requested 20,000 National Guard members to help carry out the president's mandate from the American people to arrest and deport criminal illegal aliens," DHS assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement. "The Department of Homeland Security will use every tool and resource available to get criminal illegal aliens including gang members, murderers, pedophiles, and other violent criminals out of our country. The safety of American citizens comes first.'
More: Trump wants 20,000 troops to hunt, transport immigrants. Cost estimate: $3.6 billion
It's not a given that these requests will be granted in part or in full. Pentagon officials review the proposals and decide what the military can spare without compromising its mission.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Homeland Security seeks weapons, drones for LA immigration crackdown
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