Ground Game: Trump deploys National Guard to Los Angeles and Democrats draw closer to crypto

It’s been a tumultuous weekend in California, where demonstrations over President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown led to the deployment of National Guard troops – over objections from local and state officials – and then further clashes between protesters and officers.  

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Protesters confront police on the 101 Freeway near the Metropolitan Detention Center of downtown Los Angeles, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Los Angeles protests intensify after Trump deploys National Guard 

Trump says he authorized deployment of 2,000 guard members, and his Saturday directive invoked a legal provision allowing him to deploy federal service members when there is “a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States.” 

Protests began Friday in downtown Los Angeles before spreading Saturday to Paramount, a heavily Latino city south of the city, and neighboring Compton. As federal agents set up a staging area Saturday in Paramount, demonstrators attempted to block Border Patrol vehicles, with some hurling rocks and chunks of cement. In response, agents in riot gear unleashed tear gas, flash-bang explosives and pepper balls.  

On Sunday, officers fired tear gas and rubber bullets at hundreds gathered outside Los Angeles’ Metropolitan Detention Center. Protesters directed chants of “shame” and “go home” at guard members, who stood shoulder to shoulder, carrying long guns and riot shields. Tensions were high after a Friday series of sweeps by immigration authorities, as the weeklong tally of immigrant arrests in the city climbed above 100. 

Gov. Gavin Newsom has asked Trump to remove the guard members. Trump has said the National Guard was necessary because Newsom and other Democrats have failed to stanch recent protests targeting immigration agents. Read more. 

Of note:

It appears to have been decades since a state’s national guard was activated without a request from its governor. According to the Brennan Center for Justice, the last such time was in 1965, when President Lyndon B. Johnson sent troops to protect an Alabama civil rights march.

FBI heightens focus on violent crime and illegal immigration 

Director Kash Patel’s presence at major announcements about MS-13 gang cases and the seizure of $520 million in illegal U.S.-bound narcotics has been intended to signal the premium the FBI is placing on combating violent crime, drug trafficking and illegal immigration. Current and former law enforcement officials say it reflects a rethinking of priorities and mission at a time when the country is also confronting increasingly sophisticated national security threats from abroad. 

A revised FBI priority list on its website places “Crush Violent Crime” at the top, bringing the bureau into alignment with the vision Trump, who has made a crackdown on illegal immigration, cartels and transnational gangs a cornerstone of his administration. Patel has said he wants to “get back to the basics.” His deputy, Dan Bongino, says the FBI is returning to “its roots.”  

Patel says the FBI remains focused on some of the same concerns, including China, that have dominated headlines in recent years, and the bureau said in a statement that its commitment to investigating international and domestic terrorism has not changed. But there have been signs of restructuring, like the disbanding of an FBI-led task force on foreign influence, as well as moves to dissolve a key public corruption squad. Read more. 

Of note:

The Trump administration has also proposed steep budget cuts for the FBI, and there’s been significant turnover in leadership ranks as some veteran agents with years of experience have been pushed from their positions.

Of note:

Crypto industry clout was on display in the 2024 election, in which crypto super PAC Fairshake and its affiliated PACs spent over $130 million in congressional races. That included $40 million supporting Republican Bernie Moreno in Ohio in a successful effort to defeat Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown — seen as a chief critic of the industry as the chairman of the Senate Banking Committee — and $10 million in support of Michigan Democrat Elissa Slotkin, who spoke in favor of crypto on the campaign trail, in Senate win over Republican Mike Rogers.