Trump commented on protests against the deportation of immigrants in Los Angeles during a meeting devoted to preparations for forest fires. Although on Monday he claimed that thanks to sending troops to the metropolis the situation was under control, on Tuesday he assessed that the last night was “terrible”.
– We stopped the disaster – and it looks like a planned disaster (…). They had weapons, they had tools. They had everything they needed. They threw frozen water in bottles, in glass bottles, in officers and soldiers. This is – you can't use the word uprising – but you can also use the word that these are very dangerous people – continued Trump. He added that demonstrators “met with great force and surrendered.”
Trump said that he would use the Insurrection Act – allowing the army to be used to actively suppress the riots – if he decides that there is actually an armed uprising in the country. At the same time, he claimed that “paid rebels” were involved in protests. “If protests similar to Los Angeles repeat in the rest of the country, we will react with equal or greater force,” he warned.
Riots in Los Angeles
Tuesday is the fifth day of protests that broke out after the federal agents of the group of immigrants at the Los Angeles workplace. On Tuesday, “Washington Post” wrote that some immigrants detained during the raid were already deported.
On Monday, Pentagon announced a mobilization of an additional 2,000 California National Guard soldiers who are to support the office for immigrants and customs enforcement (ICE). US President Donald Trump on Saturday decided to direct the first group of 2 thousand. Guardsmen to Los Angeles in response to protests. On Monday, however, the US Northern Command announced that about 700 maritime infantry soldiers would also be in Los Angeles to protect federal property and staff.
