National Guard Presence in Los Angeles Slashed Again Amid Ongoing Rollback
Roughly an additional 1,000 National Guard troops have been withdrawn from Los Angeles, continuing a federal rollback that leaves about 250 service members still stationed in the city to protect federal personnel and property.
The reduction, first reported by The New York Times, is part of a broader effort by defense officials to scale back the troop presence that began in early June. At one point, nearly 5,000 Guard members were deployed across the city to secure federal buildings and support agents conducting immigration enforcement during a wave of protests.
The Trump administration ordered the deployment on June 7, 2025, in response to mass demonstrations against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations. The move was made over objections from California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, both of whom criticized the federal response as excessive.
Two weeks earlier, another 2,000 troops had been pulled from the area, including the contingent of Marines assigned to the Westwood Federal Building. Officials say the phased reduction reflects a reassessment of threat levels, as protests have calmed and conditions on the ground have shifted.
Much of the National Guard’s initial activity centered on downtown Los Angeles, where immigration raids sparked days of unrest. In the aftermath, a private-sector labor report cited a 3.1% drop in workplace attendance, pointing to economic disruptions tied to the raids.
Mayor Bass responded to the latest withdrawal on social media, calling the decision “a victory for Los Angeles” and crediting continued local pressure for influencing the federal rollback.
