Downtown LA set for second night of curfew as Trump crackdown expands
Protests over immigration raids that began in Los Angeles continued to spread across the U.S. as President Donald Trump escalated his crackdown by unleashing new federal powers.
Los Angeles remained the epicenter of the demonstrations, which have triggered roughly 600 arrests since the weekend and led to clashes with law enforcement. The downtown area that's at the forefront of tensions is set to be under curfew for a second night as Mayor Karen Bass tries to stop acts of vandalism and looting.
With the curfew in place Tuesday, protests and disorder were muted compared with previous evenings. Yet tensions remain high as the city remains gripped by the divide between local and federal powers. California Gov. Gavin Newsom used a national address to slam Trump for activating 700 active-duty Marines and authorizing the deployment of up to 4,000 National Guard troops in Los Angeles.
"Democracy is under assault right before our eyes,' Newsom said Tuesday evening. "This moment we have feared has arrived.'
The federal government has further expanded its show of force. The National Guard in Los Angeles will support immigration arrests made by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on city streets. On Wednesday, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said the administration is invoking the Hobbs Act to allow federal prosecutors to take over criminal cases that would typically be handled by California authorities.
The White House has defended the actions as necessary to support what they describe as overwhelmed immigration agents and to maintain order.
"If you loot the store, we are going to charge you with robbery under the Hobbs Act, and you're looking at maximum 20 years in prison,' Bondi said.
Protesters stand in front of California National Guard soldiers and LAPD officers in Los Angeles on Tuesday. |
Bloomberg
Demonstrations have spread to cities including New York, Chicago and Milwaukee, with protesters clashing with police and local officials, including Newsom, warning about the potential for broader unrest ahead.
Bass has repeatedly criticized the lack of communication from federal authorities and said local law enforcement, including the Los Angeles Police Department and a unified command of other agencies, has handled virtually all crowd control and arrests. She warned that further militarization could inflame the situation.
According to local officials, ICE operations in Los Angeles are expected to continue daily for at least a month. Raids have targeted communities and job sites ranging from the city's Fashion District to Home Depot parking lots frequented by day laborers.
"The Trump administration's chaotic escalation here in Los Angeles is reckless,' Bass said on Wednesday. "When you raid Home Depots and workplaces, when you tear parents and children apart, and when you deploy troops to our streets, you're not trying to keep anyone safe — you're trying to cause fear and panic. These raids must stop.'
The back and forth between Newsom and Trump also continued over social media.
Trump, who has leaned into the chaos politically, claimed credit for preventing Los Angeles from "burning to the ground.'
"If our troops didn't go into Los Angeles, it would be burning to the ground right now,' he wrote on Truth Social. "The great people of Los Angeles are very lucky that I made the decision to go in and help!!!'
Newsom has engaged in a flurry of attacks against the president, with his office weaving in memes that are gaining traction on social media. In two of the latest posts, the governor's office used an apparently AI-generated voice resembling the Star Wars villain Emperor Palpatine to read out Trump's recent statements against the backdrop of Imperial stormtroopers from the movie series.
So far, the Los Angeles-area protests have been largely confined to a few square blocks of downtown in a city that spans over 500 square miles, and other suburbs and cities around the wider region. Residential and business neighborhoods like Hollywood, Century City and Beverly Hills have remained mostly untouched.
In New York, Mayor Eric Adams has said the city won't "allow violence and lawlessness' similar to Los Angeles, while police commissioner Jessica Tisch made clear the New York Police Department wouldn't "abdicate responsibility' to other forces.
On Tuesday evening, demonstrators marched through parts of Lower Manhattan, holding signs that read "ICE out of NYC,' while some clashed with police officers. Eighty-six protesters were taken into custody, with 34 arrested and charged, the NYPD told Bloomberg News. At its peak, there were about 2,000 protesters in the street at different locations, including near ICE's main field office in New York City, according to a person familiar with law enforcement activity.
In Chicago, thousands of people gathered on Tuesday night, marching into the city's business district and sometimes clashing with police. At one point a driver sped through the protests, striking one pedestrian, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. The police prevented marchers from getting to the Trump International Hotel & Tower. The protests follow increased ICE arrests in the city, where on June 4, federal agents arrested at least 10 undocumented immigrants after asking them to show up at routine immigration check in appointments at the agency's downtown office.
Hundreds of people also gathered in Milwaukee to protest recent ICE raids, with Mexican and U.S. flags waved in the crowd.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott vowed to use National Guard troops to maintain order during protests against Trump this weekend and after demonstrations broke out in Dallas and Austin.
Protesters in Los Angeles are circulating fliers over social media planning rallies in downtown Los Angeles for late afternoon. Bass has warned that anyone aside from residents and office workers will be arrested if they violate the downtown curfew, which lasts from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m.
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