2025 deployment of federal forces in the United States

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National Guard troops prepare to clash with anti-ICE protestors Los Angeles riots - June 2025 - 20250613.jpg
National Guard troops prepare to clash with anti-ICE protestors

In 2025, under President Donald Trump's second presidency, federal government forces, primarily National Guard troops, were deployed to select US cities as part of a crackdown on crime, homelessness, and undocumented immigration. These actions target Democratic Party-led cities and sparked significant controversy, with critics labeling them as abuses of power and potential violations of laws like the Posse Comitatus Act, which limits military involvement in domestic law enforcement. Deployments began in Los Angeles in June 2025 and expanded to Washington, D.C. in August 2025; plans were underway for Chicago, Illinois and potentially other cities like New York, Baltimore, San Francisco, and Oakland. [1] [2] [3] [4]

Contents

Deployments

Washington D.C.

Approximately 2,000 National Guard troops, including about 800 from D.C. and others from states like Texas, had been deployed since mid-August 2025. [5] The administration federalized the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department for 30 days and armed the troops for patrols in tourist areas rather than high-crime zones. [6] Trump claims this has brought "total safety" and a "miracle" reduction in crime, citing a week without murders, though data at the time showed violent crime was already declining in 2024-2025. [7] [8] Over 700 arrests and 91 illegal firearms seizures have been reported by August 24. [9] A poll conducted showed that nearly 80% of D.C. residents oppose the deployment. [10]

Los Angeles

Hollywood and Vermont protest Hollywood and Vermont protest getting started 2, Hollywood,, Los Angeles, California, USA.jpg
Hollywood and Vermont protest

Earlier in 2025, Trump ordered 700 Marines and 4,000 National Guard troops to the city amid protests against immigration raids, overriding California Governor Gavin Newsom's objections. [11] This deployment is cited as a precedent and is facing legal challenges from the state, arguing it violates the Posse Comitatus Act. [12]

Planned deployments

Chicago

The Pentagon has been planning a military deployment for weeks ahead of August 2025, potentially mobilizing thousands of National Guard troops as early as September 2025. [13] Trump has repeatedly singled out Chicago as "next," calling it a "mess" and claiming residents are "screaming" for federal intervention. [14] No formal request has been made to Illinois officials, and crime data shows significant declines (homicides down 30%, shootings down 40% in the past year). [15] This could involve federalizing the state's National Guard in a declared "national emergency." [16]

Other cities

President Trump has mentioned expanding to New York City (New York), New Orleans (Louisiana), Baltimore (Maryland), and Oakland (California) after Chicago. [17] [18] [19] Up to 1,700 National Guard troops are mobilizing across 19 states (e.g., Texas with the most) to support ICE on immigration enforcement, though the White House claims this is separate from the crime crackdown. [20] [21] These could serve as a "reaction force" for rapid deployments. [22]

Opposition

Local leaders denounced the moves. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson warns it could "inflame tensions" and undermine trust in law enforcement. [23] Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker calls it an "authoritarian power grab" with no emergency justification. [24] House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries accuses Trump of manufacturing a crisis. [25] D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and others highlight pre-existing crime drops and argue troops lack proper training for policing. [26]

Deployments in D.C. leverage unique federal control over the capital, but expansions elsewhere may require invoking the Insurrection Act or declaring emergencies to federalize state Guards, potentially bypassing governors. [27] Critics argue these are politically motivated, targeting Democratic cities for "theater and intimidation." [28]

Legal challenges to Trump's deployments cite the Posse Comitatus Act. [28]

On September 2, 2025, U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer forbade the Trump administration from using the National Guard or military to enforce the law in California, including via "arrests, apprehensions, searches, seizures, security patrols, traffic control, crowd control, riot control, evidence collection, interrogation, or acting as informants", with that prohibition to take effect on September 12. He said the Trump administration, if it wished to argue, would have to "satisfy the requirements of a valid constitutional or statutory exception, as defined herein, to the Posse Comitatus Act." [29]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Seldon, Aja (2025-08-22). "Trump threatens to send National Guard to San Francisco". KTVU FOX 2. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  2. ↑ Hernandez, Joe (2025-08-24). "Illinois officials blast Trump's threat to deploy National Guard in Chicago". NPR. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  3. ↑ "Trump threatens to send federal troops into Chicago and New York City". MSNBC.com. 2025-08-22. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  4. ↑ "Trump threatens to send the military to Baltimore to 'clean up' crime". NBC News. 2025-08-24. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  5. ↑ "Trump mobilizing up to 1,700 National Guard troops in 19 states in crime crackdown". The Independent. 2025-08-23. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  6. ↑ Reid, Tim (2025-08-24). "Trump crime crackdown deploys troops in Washington's safest sites". Reuters. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  7. ↑ S, Pangambam (2025-08-22). "Transcript: President Trump Remarks on FIFA World Cup, Putin, DC Crime". The Singju Post. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  8. ↑ Dale, Daniel (2025-08-12). "Fact check: Violent crime in DC has fallen in 2024 and 2025 after a 2023 spike | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  9. ↑ "719 arrests, 91 illegal guns seized in DC since beginning of Trump's federal takeover: Bondi". Yahoo News. 2025-08-22. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  10. ↑ Edwards-Levy, Ariel (2025-08-20). "DC residents feel less safe after Trump takeover: poll | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  11. ↑ Zinshteyn, Mikhail (2025-08-11). "5 things to know as Newsom and Trump go back to court over the National Guard in LA". CalMatters. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  12. ↑ "Ahead of Trial, Attorney General Bonta Lays Out Case Against the Trump Administration's Unlawful Use of Military in Violation of the Posse Comitatus Act". State of California - Department of Justice - Office of the Attorney General. 2025-08-10. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  13. ↑ "Pentagon reportedly planning military deployment in Chicago; Pritzker accuses Trump of "attempting to manufacture a crisis" - CBS Chicago". www.cbsnews.com. 2025-08-24. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  14. ↑ "'Stay out of our city': Chicago officials react to Trump's plan to target city next in crackdown". Los Angeles Times. 2025-08-24. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  15. ↑ "Gov. Pritzker says state of Illinois is seeing major drop in violent crime alongside Chicago - CBS Chicago". www.cbsnews.com. 2025-07-22. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  16. ↑ Nunn, Joseph; Reynolds, Spencer (2025-08-19). "One Week of Trump's DC Takeover Attempt | Brennan Center for Justice". www.brennancenter.org. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  17. ↑ Katz, Eric (2025-08-22). "Federal law enforcement deployments are coming to other cities, Trump says". Government Executive. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  18. ↑ "President Trump's Recent Actions in Washington, D.C., Are an Abuse of Power and Threaten Public Safety for All". Center for American Progress. 2025-08-18. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  19. ↑ "Trump says he may send National Guard to Chicago, New York". POLITICO. 2025-08-22. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  20. ↑ Williams, Austin (2025-08-23). "Up to 1,700 National Guard troops mobilizing across 19 states in immigration crackdown". FOX Local. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  21. ↑ Michael Dorgan, Jacqui Heinrich (2025-08-23). "National Guard rollout in 19 states not linked to Trump's crime crackdown, WH says". Fox News. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  22. ↑ "Pentagon plan would create military 'reaction force' for civil unrest". The Washington Post. 2025-08-12. ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  23. ↑ Koch, Alexandra (2025-08-22). "Chicago mayor calls Trump's National Guard deployment plan 'uncoordinated, uncalled-for and unsound'". Fox News. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  24. ↑ "Johnson and Pritzker call Trump's threat to send National Guard to Chicago illegal - CBS Chicago". www.cbsnews.com. 2025-08-22. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  25. ↑ Luscombe, Richard (2025-08-24). "Trump 'manufactured crisis' to justify plan to send national guard to Chicago, leading Democrat says". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  26. ↑ Gelman, Scott (2025-08-22). "DC mayor responds to criticism that city crime data is inaccurate". WTOP News. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  27. ↑ "Explainer: Can Trump send the National Guard to cities around the US?". Reuters. 2025-08-20. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  28. 1 2 Brownstein, Ronald (2025-08-17). "Analysis: The common thread in Trump's latest moves: squeezing big blue cities | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  29. ↑ Breyer, Charles (September 2, 2025). "Newsom v. Trump (U.S. District Court, Northern District of California)" (PDF). storage.courtlistener.com. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
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