Trump Administration Live Updates: Judge Says President’s L.A. Troop Deployment Was Illegal

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A federal judge ruled that President Trump’s deployment of 5,000 Marines and National Guard troops to Los Angeles in June violated the Posse Comitatus Act. The ruling accused Trump of turning the troops into a police force and ordered the remaining troops to be released or limited to guarding federal buildings.

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Updated 

Sept. 2, 2025, 10:37 a.m. ET3 minutes ago

President Trump mobilized National Guard troops in California in June.Gabriela Bhaskar/The New York Times

Where Things Stand

• L.A. deployment: A federal judge in California said President Trump had violated the law with his deployment of roughly 5,000 Marines and National Guard troops to Los Angeles over immigration protests in June. The ruling accused Mr. Trump of effectively turning the soldiers into a police force, saying he and his co-defendants had “violated the Posse Comitatus Act,” which generally prohibits the use of the military to enforce domestic law. Read more ›

• Epstein case: As lawmakers return from recess, a House committee plans to meet on Tuesday with 10 people who have accused the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein of sex trafficking, putting further attention on an issue President Trump has sought to downplay. Read more ›

• Trump announcement: Mr. Trump will make “an exciting announcement related to the Department of Defense” on Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement.

President Trump mobilized National Guard troops in California in June.Mark Abramson for The New York Times

The Trump administration illegally used thousands of military troops in Southern California, a federal judge said on Tuesday, in a ruling that accused the president of effectively turning nearly 5,000 Marines and National Guard soldiers into a national police force.

The ruling, by Judge Charles R. Breyer of the Federal District Court in San Francisco, came more than two months into a contentious deployment that was set off by immigration protests in June and has since dwindled to about 300 National Guard soldiers. The judge ordered that the remaining troops should either be released or limited to guarding federal buildings, but he placed his injunction on hold for 10 days.

Sept. 2, 2025, 8:21 a.m. ET

President Trump will make “an exciting announcement related to the Department of Defense” on Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement. 

Representative James Comer, Republican of Kentucky, has issued a subpoena to the Department of Justice and to Jeffrey Epstein’s estate for documents related to his case.Kenny Holston/The New York Times

A House committee plans to meet on Tuesday with 10 people who have accused the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein of sex trafficking, putting further attention on an issue President Trump has sought to downplay.

Mr. Trump’s supporters have been galvanized by conspiracy theories that Mr. Epstein was only one among a cabal of pedophiles in the upper echelons of American society. Mr. Epstein died in 2019 while in prison awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.

Rudolph W. Giuliani, a former mayor of New York City, advised President Trump during his 2016 presidential campaign and served as his lawyer during his first term.Kendrick Brinson for The New York Times

President Trump said on Monday that he would award Rudolph W. Giuliani, his onetime lawyer and a former mayor of New York City, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, two days after Mr. Giuliani was injured in a car accident.

In a statement posted to Truth Social, Mr. Trump called Mr. Giuliani “the greatest mayor in the history of New York City, and an equally great American Patriot“