Hegseth fails to name constitutional authority that lets Trump send Marines to L.A.

Legal Authority & Deployment - The administration deployed active duty Marines to California neighborhoods, citing constitutional authority to defend federal law enforcement, but specific constitutional or statutory authority was not immediately provided [1][2][3][4] - The President relied on section 12406 of title 10 regarding National Guard troops, but the specific authority for deploying active duty Marines remained unclear [3] - The Secretary of Defense was unable to immediately cite the legal authority for deploying active duty Marines [4] Political Context & Motivation - The deployment of Marines is perceived as a distraction from a bill that would terminate health insurance from 16 million people and nutrition assistance from millions more to pay for corporate tax breaks [5] - The deployment is attributed to a direct order from Donald Trump [5] - The action is viewed as a distraction tactic [5][6]