Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth defended the administration’s decision to deploy California National Guard troops to quell violence in Los Angeles, citing the riots that took place in Minnesota in 2020.

The Department of Defense has deployed 700 active-duty Marines and 4,000 National Guard troops to California in response to days of riots in Los Angeles over immigration raids. The decision has been denounced by local government leaders who argued that the militarized presence only worsened the tension regarding the raids and deportations.