PULSE POINTS:
❓What Happened: A battalion of U.S. Marines is reportedly being mobilized to relieve National Guard soldiers tasked with protecting federal property amid violent pro-illegal immigrant riots in Los Angeles, California.
👥 Who’s Involved: The U.S. Marine Corps, President Donald J. Trump, Governor Gavin Newsom (D), Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass (D), the California National Guard, the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), and violent pro-illegal immigrant rioters.
📍 Where & When: The riots began in Los Angeles over the weekend, while reports of a possible mobilization of the Marine battalion first surfaced late Monday afternoon on June 9, 2025.
⚠️ Impact: It is believed the Marines will relieve some of the National Guard soldiers who have previously been deployed to protect federal property, though, unless President Trump invokes the Insurrection Act, neither the Guard troops nor the Marines are legally allowed to arrest and detain any rioters.
IN FULL:
A battalion of Marines, estimated to number around 700, is allegedly being mobilized to join 2,000 National Guard soldiers in Los Angeles, California, to secure and protect federal property amid ongoing pro-illegal immigration riots in the city. The detachment, believed to originate from the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in California, comes after a weekend of violent riots broke out across Los Angeles, with demonstrators setting fire to cars, blocking highways, and attempting to storm a federal illegal immigration detention facility.
Currently, 2,000 members of the National Guard have been called up in California, though only about 300 of them have been deployed to the streets. Notably, this move came after the Democratic Mayor of Los Angeles, Karen Bass, resisted dispatching the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) to restore order until the situation had already spiraled out of control. So far, over 150 people have been arrested by the LAPD, and a number of businesses and other properties have been damaged.
The National Guard soldiers and Marines are being tasked with property protection only. Under law, they are not allowed to engage in policing action on American soil unless President Donald J. Trump invokes the Insurrection Act. Already, Governor Gavin Newsom (D-CA) is suing the Trump administration, seeking a federal court order blocking the federalization and deployment of the National Guard soldiers.
Notably, the National Pulse reported earlier on Monday that the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA), one of the lead organizers of the demonstrations, received nearly $34 million in grants from California and has strong ties to the Democrats.
Violent anti-ICE and pro-illegal immigrant demonstrations have broken out beyond Los Angeles, with 60 individuals being arrested in San Francisco.