Unrest in Los Angeles

One of Trump’s campaign promises was to deal with immigration by building a wall on the southern border. Another promise was to deport illegal immigrants. Those actions are underway but have resulted in growing protests across the country from various groups. Californian governor Gavin Newsom is trying to stop Trump’s efforts but has not been successful so far. Protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) actions in Los Angeles have continued for several days, with the Trump administration deploying National Guard troops and hundreds of Marines in response.

The protests began when immigration raids took place in the Los Angeles area. Video from Friday afternoon showed protesters gathering outside a clothing warehouse that ICE was targeting, and protesters attempting to stop a law enforcement van. Over the weekend, the protests escalated, with some demonstrations declared unlawful assemblies and the National Guard being mobilized.

ICE agents are in Los Angeles as part of Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration. Arrests by the agency during Mr. Trump’s second term topped 100,000 as of last week. The operations are wider in scope than previous ICE actions and represent a shift from the agency’s targeted enforcement operations. The Trump administration has responded strongly to the Los Angeles protests. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem said on CBS News that the administration would not allow for a repeat of 2020, referencing the protests that erupted after George Floyd’s death.

Trump deployed National Guard troops to Los Angeles, marking the first time a president sent troops into a state without a state request in decades. Trump invoked Title 10, a federal code that allows the president to call in the National Guard in the event that “the United States, or any of the commonwealths or possessions, is invaded or is in danger of invasion by a foreign nation; there is a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the government of the United States; or the president is unable with the regular forces to execute the laws of the United States.” The order called for at least 2,000 National Guard troops.

California governor Newsom criticized the move on social media, writing that there was “currently no unmet need” and describing the deployment as “purposefully inflammatory.” California also sued the Trump administration, with attorneys for the state saying Mr. Trump “unlawfully bypassed” Newsom by putting National Guard troops under federal control without the governor’s permission.

The Trump administration activated hundreds of U.S. Marines to join the National Guard troops. A defense official said that 700 active-duty Marines started arriving in L.A. on Tuesday morning. Newsom said he could take legal action over the use of Marines, calling it illegal. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth defended the administration’s mobilization of the National Guard and Marine Corps members, saying, “We believe ICE agents should be allowed to be safe in doing their operations and we have deployed National Guard and the Marines to protect them in the execution of their duties because we ought to be able to enforce immigration law in this country.”

However, as with the Black Lives Matter riots in 2020, the L.A. disturbances are not spontaneous or chaotic. It is part of the polarized and increasingly extreme political landscape. The unrest has been planned, supported, and even staffed by activist organizations whose goals have nothing to do with immigration law. Follow the money to Mexican cartels, China, taxpayer-funded NGOs, and even teachers and service employee unions.

The first incident in Los Angeles that led to the protest came when ICE served criminal warrants on a money-laundering operation in L.A.’s fashion district. That operation launders millions of dollars in drug money every year for the Mexican cartels. This was actually a strike against organized crime, potential cartel activity, money laundering, and criminals. The Mexican government chimed in with concerns over a provision in the so-called Big, Beautiful Bill that would add an additional 3.5% tax on remittances sent by Mexicans in the U.S. back to Mexico. Those remittances are valued at $64.7 billion a year, amounting to between 3 to 5 percent of Mexico’s total GDP. New left-wing Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum called to mobilize to defeat the tax proposal.

Then there is a shadowy tech billionaire named Neville Roy Singham, an American who relocated to China and now lives in Shanghai. Singham provides massive financial support to the U.S. Party for Socialism and Liberation, a political party that is pro-Beijing which printed the signs carried by demonstrators. Another group active during the protests is called “Union del Barrio.” This group believes the entire American Southwest still belongs to Mexico. Another pivotal nonprofit group is called The Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA),” which received $34 million in 2023, mostly from the state of California, up from $12 million it received in 2022. The group even received $450,000 in grants from the federal Department of Homeland Security during the Biden administration for “citizenship education and training.” Teachers’ unions, the Service Employees union, and others are also active in stoking the protests.

Efforts like this have a way of metastasizing to other cities, as occurred during the George Floyd riots that began in Minneapolis but popped up in many other cities after protesters were bussed in over state lines. Disturbances have already occurred in San Francisco and Austin, and a group called “No Kings” is working with teachers’ unions and others to plan disturbances on June 14, which is the day of a parade in Washington DC commemorating the US Army’s 250th birthday. The Trump administration will continue investigation into who is financing the rioters, and the ICE will continue the work to clean up the country from criminal elements. At the same time, the far-left suddenly has a cause, and the chaos is spreading. Anti-ICE riots have erupted in Atlanta, Chicago, New York and Seattle and seem to be spreading to other cities. It looks like the unrest in Los Angeles is the start of a new wave of protests across the country. Trump is ready to fight back.