On Monday, I followed the Department of Defense to see what these uniformed men did in the immigration raid. As a result, the picture was a bit magical: MacArthur Park was in chaos, and the National Guard soldiers were pulled over to put out the fire. It just happened that the Department of Homeland Security was conducting a raid, and the children in the nearby summer camp were all scared.
Now, more than 4,000 National Guardsmen have been “requisitioned” by the federal government. Governor Newsom has no say and must listen to the federal government.
Back to the moment in MacArthur Park, Kevin and the guard just got off the car and saw a team of federal police on horseback lining up in the park. The infantry column of the Department of Homeland Security rushed directly into the park football field. The scene exploded instantly, and protesters popped up like mushrooms after rain. Someone held a megaphone and shouted: “You separated children from their families. This is so unfair!” The atmosphere was directly full.
Not long after, Mayor Karen Bass also rushed over. She originally planned to meet the governor, but she changed her route and came to the park to get some truth from the Department of Homeland Security. “I told them that they must leave, get out now!” Bass blasted the media.
To be honest, Kevin basically only saw the police from the Department of Homeland Security standing there, and didn’t see anyone being arrested. The city leaders all thought this was a political show. Bass also added: “The park is full of children today, they are in summer camp.” City Councilman Marquis directly joked: “The scene in the morning was like shooting a TikTok short video – it was exaggerated.”
Witnesses filmed federal agents cursing and directing everyone to retreat, and someone broke the news: “They pointed guns at us and surrounded our truck. For a moment, I really thought we were done.” It made my scalp numb.
About 20 to 30 minutes later, the federal agents withdrew. It was not peaceful when we left. A man driving a Tesla was not happy with the operation and followed the National Guard car closely, honking and cursing. It was a scene of road rage.
So what did the National Guard do in this kind of operation? According to Kevin, he did not see any actual action by the guard along the way. They just stood around the edge of the park, basically as a background board. They can’t arrest people by themselves. The Department of Defense also made it clear that the Department of Homeland Security is completely different from them. Even if the Department of Homeland Security arrests people every day, the National Guard can only help temporarily control people when someone threatens the Department of Homeland Security police. They are not responsible for anything else.
So how many National Guard soldiers are still under federal control in Southern California? The Department of Defense said that 4,200 are still under federal control, and only a few dozen were present at the MacArthur Park incident on Monday. When will it be returned to the governor? Sorry, it’s not certain yet. Wait for notification.
