


Approximately 700 active-duty Marines who were mobilized to Los Angeles last month in response to protests over immigration raids are being sent home, the Pentagon announced on Monday.
The Marines, which were from the 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division, were deployed to LA to help defend federal property and personnel amid increasingly violent clashes between Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers and protesters.
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“With stability returning to Los Angeles, the secretary has directed the redeployment of the 700 Marines whose presence sent a clear message: Lawlessness will not be tolerated,” chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement to the Washington Examiner.
“Their rapid response, unwavering discipline, and unmistakable presence were instrumental in restoring order and upholding the rule of law,” he added. “We’re deeply grateful for their service and for the strength and professionalism they brought to this mission.”

In addition to the active-duty Marines, President Donald Trump deployed about 4,000 California National Guard troops despite criticism from Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA), who called the deployments “completely unwarranted, uncalled for, and unprecedented.”
Governors control their state’s National Guard, but the president can usurp that power in specific instances, though it is rare.
Parnell announced last week that about half of the National Guard troops were released from the mission, so roughly 2,000 are still assigned.
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Neither the Marines nor National Guard personnel were legally allowed to carry out arrests of migrants or rioters. They were deployed to protect federal property and agents conducting arrests to free up more law enforcement officers to carry out those operations.
Bryn MacDonnell, a senior Pentagon official who is serving as the acting comptroller, said the department’s estimated cost for the mission was roughly $134 million.