When President Donald Trump put 2,000 National Guard troops under his control on Saturday night and ordered them into Los Angeles, it was billed as an urgent response to quell protests. But it was also a move long in the making.

Maj. Gen. Scott Sherman said 500 National Guard members have been trained to accompany agents on immigration operations.

Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell sharply countered President Donald Trump’s claims that the city was at a point of needing National Guard support, emphasizing Wednesday that protests were “nowhere near” that level.

But what does a state's National Guard do that local or state law enforcement can't? The National Guard is almost always called upon by a state's governor. Their job is broad, ess

Soldiers mobilized by President Trump protected ICE agents on their raids in Los Angeles. The state of California said the deployment was illegal.

The National Guard has at times detained protesters in its deployment to Los Angeles, an official said Wednesday, as demonstrations against Immigration and Customs enforcement raids spread to other major cities.

As tensions persist following mass immigration raids in Los Angeles, people continue to rally in protest of the Trump administration’s detention and deportation of immigrants.

National Guard troops already have temporarily detained civilians in the Los Angeles protests over immigration raids.

San Francisco — A federal court hearing is scheduled for Thursday on whether the Trump administration can use the National Guard and Marines to assist with immigration raids in Los Angeles.