Correspondence - Item 27 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Congre,5.5 of the uniteb *tate.5 Va�oington, M(f 20515 June 23, 2025 The Honorable Pete Hegseth The Honorable Pamela Bondi Secretary of Defense Attorney General 1400 Defense Pentagon 950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20301 Washington, DC 20530 The Honorable Kristi Noem Secretary of Homeland Security 2707 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE Washington, DC 20528 Secretary Hegseth, Attorney General Bondi, and Secretary Noem: In response to unprecedented immigration raids in Los Angeles last week, which targeted individuals at their places of work and in their communities, citizens began to assemble and protest their government. The right to protest our government is explicitly protected under the First Amendment. While the vast majority of these protestors were peaceful, some instigators took the opportunity to engage in unlawful behavior. Many of those individuals were arrested by state and local law enforcement. Despite the situation being controlled by state and local law enforcement, President Trump saw an opportunity to amplify the crisis of his own creation by unilaterally and unlawfully federalizing and deploying 4,000 California National Guard troops to the streets of Los Angeles. In addition, he deployed 700 active-duty United States Marines. The President did this without the consultation of local elected officials, law enforcement, and the Governor of California. The Constitution and federal law provide limitations on the domestic use of the National Guard. Article I, Section 8, Clauses 15 and 16 provide that Congress has the authority to organize, arm, and call the militia to execute laws, suppress insurrections, and repel invasions.' Congress has delegated some of its authority to the President including under 10 U.S.C. § 12406, which the administration cited as its legal justification.' This authority contains specific procedures and conditions for when the President can federalize and deploy the National Guard. This includes: the President may call into Federal service members and units of the National Guard of any State in such numbers as he considers necessary to repel the invasion, suppress the rebellion, or execute those laws. Orders for these purposes shall be issued through the governors of the States or, in the case of the District of Columbia, through the commanding general of the National Guard of the District of Columbia.' 'U.S. Const. art. I, § 8,cls. 15-16 2 Memorandum from the President,Department of Defense Security for the Protection of Department of Homeland Security Functions,at 1 (June 7,2025), hUs://www.wWtehouse. oov/presidential-actions/2025/06/department-of-defense-security-for-the-protection-of-department-of-homela nd-securi -functions/ 3 10 U.S.C. § 12406(3)