700 Marines Deployed to Southern California for Federal Facility Protection

Marine and National Guard Deployment

• 🎯 700 U.S. Marines have arrived in Southern California to support federal operations.
• 🤝 They will join 2,000 California National Guard troops already present, with an additional 2,000 National Guard members activated and federalized.
• 🏛️ The federalized National Guard troops are now taking orders from the federal government, not the state of California.

Mission Objectives

• 🛡️ The Marines and National Guard will be responsible for protecting federal buildings.
• 🧑‍⚖️ They will also protect federal ICE agency agents during immigration enforcement operations.
• 🚫 Major General stressed that the troops do not perform law enforcement activities such as making arrests.

Training and Authority

• 🔫 Marines are trained to use their weapons for personal protection.
• 🗣️ The mission involves crowd control and working with federal law enforcement, which is a departure from typical duties.
• ✋ While they cannot arrest individuals, they have the power to detain someone and then call a law enforcement agent to complete the arrest.

Deployment Duration

• ⏳ The deployment duration is indefinite, with troops remaining as long as the federal government wants them there.
• 📍 The total force in Los Angeles will consist of 4,000 National Guard members and 700 Marines.