U.S. pulls half of National Guard troops from LA

Two thousand California National Guard troops are withdrawing from their protection mission in Los Angeles, Mayor Karen Bass said Tuesday. About 4,000 National Guard and 700 Marines previously guarded federal buildings and agents during immigration enforcement operations in the city.

Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the withdrawal since lawlessness from protests against immigration enforcement in Los Angeles had subsided, according to local news reports. The troops deployed in early June despite Gov. Gavin Newsom’s objections and a legal battle. KABC-TV in Los Angeles reported that U.S. Northern Command Gen. Gregory Guillot asked Hegseth to return 200 of the National Guard troops to a wildfire prevention unit, according to Los Angeles news.

How did California authorities respond? Newsom posted that the decision was good. He wanted the rest of the troops to withdraw as well, he said. LA Mayor Bass characterized the withdrawal as a retreat and said city residents protested peacefully. The troops weren’t needed, she said.

Dig deeper: Read my report on an appeals court’s decision to allow President Donald Trump to deploy the California National Guard.