() Protesters against President Donald Trump’s immigration policies continued to clash with National Guard troops and police in Los Angeles on Sunday after a weekend of unrest.
reporters on the ground described the scene next to City Hall near the Civic Center as “a mess” in the early hours of Monday morning.
Police declared an “unlawful assembly” in the city late Sunday, and it was unclear how many were arrested. At least two dozen were arrested Saturday.
The 101 Freeway, a key artery into downtown LA, remained blocked off early Monday morning, and some employees of nearby businesses were reportedly told not to come to work. Several Waymo robo-taxi vehicles were set on fire. Because they’re electric, the flames were harder to put out.
Tensions escalated Saturday in response to Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids at a Home Depot in the city of Paramount, south of LA.
President Donald Trump deployed hundreds of National Guard members to the area Sunday and said he was prepared to send in the Marines, a move several California officials have slammed as an escalation of chaos.
In addition to the LA Police Department, police from nearby Glendale and Redondo Beach also responded to the scene, where officers used foam batons, tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the crowds.
Protests also broke out in San Francisco late Sunday, following recent demonstrations in Chicago and New York City.
Trump, Gov. Gavin Newsom respond to anti-ICE protests
“I have a little statement. They spit, we hit,” Trump said Sunday in response to the protests. “Nobody’s going to spit on our police officers. Nobody’s going to spit on our military.”
Trump has not ruled out more military involvement in the Los Angeles area and threatened to arrest California officials if they stand in the way.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom pushed back Monday morning, saying, “Arrest me.”
Trump deployed the California National Guard without Newsom’s request, the first time in history a president has sent troops to the state without the governor’s request since the Civil Rights Movement.
Newsom said Trump not protesters is escalating the situation.
“Donald Trump has created the conditions you see on your TV tonight. He’s exacerbated the conditions. … He’s putting fuel on this fire ever since he announced he was taking over the National Guard,” Newsom told MSNBC.
Newsom issued a warning to those he called bad actors, saying violent acts would not be tolerated. He also said Trump was using the protests as an “excuse to militarize a city and circumvent democracy.”
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said the Trump administration provoked the chaos with immigration raids and told affiliate KTLA she was in contact with border czar Tom Homan.
‘s Ashley Soriano contributed to this report.
