By Trevor Hunnicutt
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -President Donald Trump will address U.S. soldiers on Tuesday as his administration deploys 700 Marines to Los Angeles in an escalating response to street protests over his immigration policies.
Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth were scheduled to visit Fort Bragg, home to some 50,000 active-duty soldiers, for long-scheduled commemorations of the U.S. Army’s 250th anniversary ahead of a major parade in Washington on Saturday.
The visit comes as Trump, a Republican, is temporarily deploying forces within California to reinforce National Guard troops sent to help protect federal property and personnel. California’s Democratic-led government has said the move is an abuse of power and an unnecessary provocation.
Street demonstrations in Southern California have been underway since Friday, when activists clashed with sheriff’s deputies.
Trump has pledged to deport record numbers of people who are in the country illegally and to lock down the U.S.-Mexico border, setting the ICE border enforcement agency a daily goal of arresting at least 3,000 migrants.
Demonstrators in Los Angeles have assembled, among other places, at a government facility where immigrants are detained.
Trump’s remarks to troops were expected to focus on the Army anniversary, including the courage of soldiers, who will be among the 15,000 expected in the audience, according to a White House official. Trump will also visit a bunker to view a military demonstration of artillery, special forces and paratroopers.
The week’s Army commemorations combine Trump’s enthusiasm for patriotic pomp and his political positioning as a law-and-order president. Saturday’s celebrations in Washington include thousands of troops, dozens of military aircraft and coincide with Trump’s 79th birthday.
The Army was established on June 14, 1775, more than a year before the Declaration of Independence.
Earlier this year, Trump restored the name Fort Bragg to the base, one of the largest in the world, despite a federal law that prohibits honoring generals who fought for the South during the Civil War. His administration says the name now honors a different Bragg – Private First Class Roland Bragg, who served during World War Two. In 2023, the base had been renamed Fort Liberty, a change driven by racial justice protests.
Since launching his second term in office in January, Trump has made the military a focus of his efforts, with his defense secretary working to purge transgender service members, top officials appointed under his Democratic predecessor and even books deemed out of step.
Trump has pledged to avoid international conflict while launching new weapons programs and increasing the use of the military domestically, including in immigration enforcement. His cost-cutting government reforms have largely spared the Defense Department’s nearly $1 trillion annual budget.
(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt; Additional reporting by Idrees Ali and Phillip Stewart; Editing by Michael Perry)
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