National Guard troops are in LA—Here's what they can and can't do, for now, as Trump deploys them in response to protests
The California National Guard troops that President Donald Trump deployed to the Los Angeles area in response to protests can only provide protection and logistical support to immigration agents there, according to Georgetown University law professor Stephen Vladeck. But that changes, if the Insurrection Act is invoked.
President Donald Trump's decision to federalize California National Guard troops and deploy them to the Los Angeles area puts them in more of a support role, according to a legal expert.
On Saturday, Trump exercised his authority to place state National Guard troops under federal command in response to protests over Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids—over the objections of Gov. Gavin Newsom and local officials who said it's unnecessary.
On Sunday morning, members of the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, the largest combat unit in the California Army National Guard, began arriving in Los Angeles.
But the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878 largely prevents federal troops from engaging in civil law enforcement, Stephen Vladeck, a law professor at Georgetown University, wrote in his newsletter.
'All that these troops will be able to do is provide a form of force protection and other logistical support for ICE personnel,' he explained. 'Whether that, in turn, leads to further escalation is the bigger issue (and, indeed, may be the very purpose of their deployment).'
There is an exception to the Posse Comitatus Act that would allow troops to take a more active role in law enforcement. The Insurrection Act, which has not been invoked yet, lets them 'to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions.'
In theory, according to the Brennan Center for Justice, the Insurrection Act should be used only in a crisis that civilian authorities can't handle, but 'the law's requirements are poorly explained and leave virtually everything up to the discretion of the president.'
At face value, Trump's order to deploy California National Guard troops to Los Angeles is meant to protect Department of Homeland Security personnel from attacks, Vladeck explained.
While that represents a significant and unnecessary escalation, he added, it's not by itself a mass deployment of troops into a U.S. city.
'That said, there are still at least three reasons to be deeply concerned about President Trump's (hasty) actions on Saturday night,' Vladeck warned.
First, the presence of federal troops raises the risk of escalating violence. Second, there's the possibility that the deployment of National Guard troops, even in a limited manner now, sets up more aggressive responses to similar protests later, perhaps even the Insurrection Act. Third, domestic use of the military can have 'corrosive effects' on the troops, the relationship between federal and local/state authorities, as well as the relationship between the military and civil society.
'For now, the key takeaways are that there really isn't much that these federalized National Guard troops will be able to do—and that this might be the very reason why this is the step the President is taking tonight, rather than something even more aggressive,' Vladeck said.
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

Yahoo
42 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Israeli navy attacks rebel-held Yemeni port city of Hodeida
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The Israeli navy attacked docks in Yemen's rebel-held port city of Hodeida on Tuesday, likely damaging facilities that are key to aid shipments to the hungry, war-wracked nation. The Israeli military said navy missile ships conducted the strikes, the first time its forces have been involved in attacks against the Houthi rebels. Tuesday's attack comes as the Houthis have repeatedly launched missiles and drones targeting Israel during its war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip. The Houthis announced the attack via their al-Masirah satellite news channel. They said the attack targeted docks there, without elaborating. Late Monday, Israel issued online warnings to Yemenis to evacuate from Ras Isa, Hodeida and al-Salif ports over the Houthis' alleged use of seaports for attacks. 'The port is used to transfer weapons and is a further example of the Houthi terrorist regime's cynical exploitation of civilian infrastructure in order to advance terrorist activities,' the Israeli military said in a statement Tuesday. Hodeida also is the main entry point for food and other humanitarian aid for millions of Yemenis since the war began when the Houthis seized Yemen's capital, Sanaa, in 2014. The Houthis have been launching persistent missile and drone attacks against commercial and military ships in the region in what the group's leadership has described as an effort to end Israel's offensive in Gaza. From November 2023 until January 2025, the Houthis targeted more than 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones, sinking two of them and killing four sailors. That has greatly reduced the flow of trade through the Red Sea corridor, which typically sees $1 trillion of goods move through it annually. The Houthis paused attacks in a self-imposed ceasefire until the U.S. launched a broad assault against the rebels in mid-March. President Donald Trump paused those attacks just before his trip to the Mideast, saying the rebels had 'capitulated' to American demands. Early Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth wrote on the social platform X that U.S. Navy ships had traveled through the Red Sea and its Bab el-Mandeb Strait 'multiple times in recent days' without facing Houthi attacks. 'These transits occurred without challenge and demonstrate the success of both Operation ROUGH RIDER and the President's Peace Through Strength agenda,' Hegseth wrote ahead of facing Congress for the first time since sharing sensitive military details of America's military campaign against the Houthis in a Signal chat. It's unclear how the Houthis will respond now that an attack has come from the sea, rather than the air, from the Israelis. Meanwhile, a wider, decadelong war in Yemen between the Houthis and the country's exiled government, backed by a Saudi-led coalition, remains in a stalemate.
Yahoo
42 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Donald Trump Reveals What's Next For That Tesla He Bought From Elon Musk
Donald Trump on Monday addressed a question that's been on many people's minds ever since the president's spectacular blow-out with former so-called 'First Buddy' Elon Musk last week. Namely, what will happen to the red Tesla model S that Trump bought during a White House event in March to promote Musk's electric vehicle brand amid backlash to the billionaire's now-ended role leading the public spending-slashing, unofficial Department of Government Efficiency. 'Are you going to get rid of the Tesla and the Starlink system that you have here at the White House?' Trump was asked by a reporter. 'No, I haven't heard that,' the president replied. 'I mean, I may move the Tesla around a little bit but I don't think we'll be doing that with Starlink, it's a good service,' he added, the latter being Musk's satellite internet service. The journalist pressed Trump on the Tesla: 'Where are you going to move it to? Move it around? What do you mean?' Trump replied: 'I have a lot of locations. I've got so many locations I don't know what to do with them all.' Watch the exchange here: Earlier this month, a White House official had claimed that Trump would sell or give away the car. Karoline Leavitt Squirms Over Maria Bartiromo's Blunt Question About Elon Musk Trump Accused Of Inciting Violence With Chilling New Rhyme Mike Johnson Offers Bizarre Justification For ICE Masks. Backlash Follows. George Clooney Reveals The 1 Line He Used To Silence Protesters During Broadway Play
Yahoo
42 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump's protest suppression tactic backfires as 'No Kings' events mushroom after L.A. confrontations
Rachel Maddow reports on the planning of a massive protest event called "No Kings" scheduled for Saturday, June 14th, overshadowing Donald Trump's theatrical military parade, and marking a new peak in anti-Trump activism.