More than 500 Marines from Twentynine Palms are preparing to support National Guard in L.A.
More than 500 Marines from Twentynine Palms are preparing to support National Guard in L.A.
More than 500 light infantry Marines from Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms are readying for possible deployment to Los Angeles in support of the Army National Guard, a Marine Corps spokesman confirmed Monday, June 9.
The order came from Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, who on Sunday, June 8, called up guardsmen after violent protests broke out over immigration enforcement.
The 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines would support the soldiers, who have been placed under federal command, to protect federal personnel and buildings, said John Ingle, as spokesman for U.S. Northern Command.
“At this time, there are approximately 300 members of the California Army National Guard’s 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team deployed at the following locations in the greater Los Angeles area: Los Angeles, Paramount and Compton,” he said.
The Marines, a 1st Marine Division infantry battalion, are in a “prepared to deploy” status should it be necessary to augment and support the soldiers, Ingle said. He declined to comment when asked under what circumstances or when they might be deployed.
In a tweet around 2 p.m. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s press office said, “From our understanding, this is moving Marines from one base to another base. At this time, the information we have is that Marines are not being deployed (there is a difference between that and being mobilized).”
The state has sued the Trump administration over the deployment of the National Guard. State officials said the move was unnecessary and Attorney General Rob Bonta said it “trampled” California’s sovereignty.
“The level of escalation is completely unwarranted, uncalled for, and unprecedented — mobilizing the best-in-class branch of the U.S. military against its own citizens,” the governor’s press office said in its tweet about the readying of the Marines.
Staff Reporter Kaitlyn Schallhorn contributed to this report.
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