President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he would consider invoking the Insurrection Act if the unrest in Los Angeles deteriorates, coming after he ordered troops to the city amid days of protests and riots against immigration enforcement measures.
Among the most powerful tools a president has, the Insurrection Act authorizes the president to use the military to deal with rebellions or domestic violence inside the United States under certain circumstances. The act is an exception to the Posse Comitatus Act, which generally prohibits the U.S. military from partaking in domestic law enforcement measures.
He also said, “If we didn’t get involved, right now Los Angeles would be burning just like it was burning a number of months ago,” adding, “We are not playing around.”
Trump said that agitators in Los Angeles were breaking up pieces of concrete and throwing chunks at police, soldiers, and others during the riots, while some were seen dropping chunks of concrete from overpasses onto passing cars. Some of those individuals are in custody now, he said.
When pressed on how he would determine whether an insurrection is taking place, the president said to “take a look at what’s happening,” adding that in some parts of Los Angeles, he could say that it could amount to an insurrection.
“These are paid insurrectionists. These are paid troublemakers,” Trump said, referring to those who were breaking up concrete.
The law is often called the “Insurrection Act of 1807,” but the law is actually an amalgamation of different statutes enacted by Congress between 1792 and 1871.
The 700 Marines and another 2,000 National Guard troops were ordered to Los Angeles on Monday, increasing a military presence that local officials and Gov. Gavin Newsom have said they do not want.
Marine Corps Gen. Eric Smith told a budget hearing on Capitol Hill that the battalion has not yet been sent to any protests. The Marines were trained for crowd control but have no arrest authority and are there to protect government property and personnel, he said.
Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said on Tuesday that he was confident in the police department’s ability to handle large-scale demonstrations and that the Marines’ arrival without coordinating with the police department would present a “significant logistical and operational challenge.”
California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a lawsuit over the use of National Guard troops following the first deployment, telling reporters that Trump had overridden the state’s sovereignty. He sought a court order declaring Trump’s use of the Guard unlawful and asking for a restraining order to halt the deployment.
Demonstrations spread on Monday to several other cities, including San Francisco and Santa Ana, California, as well as Dallas and Austin, Texas. Authorities in Austin said police used pepper spray balls and tear gas to disperse a crowd that threw rocks and bottles at officers, injuring four.
Trump and other administration officials have said that the military was needed because Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass reacted too slowly in dealing with the unrest.
The protests were sparked by Trump’s enforcement measures in the area targeting illegal immigrants, some of whom have criminal records. They started on June 6 in downtown Los Angeles before spreading over the weekend to Paramount and neighboring Compton.
Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, has said in media interviews that in one instance last week, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials and other federal agents served a warrant to a business in Los Angeles accused of multiple criminal charges.
