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       On a highway in downtown Los Angeles yesterday.Credit...Philip Cheung for The New York Times

       Why is the U.S. military in L.A.? The use of military force on domestic soil in the U.S. is rare, and it is usually reserved only for the most extreme situations. In deploying 4,000 members of the National Guard and 700 Marines in response to protests over immigration raids in Los Angeles, President Trump is pushing his powers to the limit.

       California officials asked a court yesterday for an emergency order that would restrict the deployment of the Marines and Guard troops in Los Angeles to protecting federal property. “Trump is turning the U.S. military against American citizens,” California’s governor, Gavin Newsom, wrote on social media. “The courts must immediately block these illegal actions.”

       Trump defended his response, saying: “If we didn’t get involved, right now Los Angeles would be burning.” We have live updates.

       I asked my colleague Helene Cooper, who covers the Pentagon, about the troop deployments. “While National Guard troops often deploy to help local authorities contend with wildfires, national disasters or even protests, it is usually done in conjunction with governors,” she said. “As with many other things in this administration, President Trump is pushing the boundaries of the law.”

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       Active duty forces are barred from domestic law enforcement, unless the president invokes the Insurrection Act, which allows for the use of federal troops on U.S. soil. “It is hard to see how the Los Angeles protests, which are scattered and not really affecting life in the city in a widespread way, can be seen as an insurrection,” Helene said.

       My colleague Jesus Jiménez, who is reporting on the ground in L.A., said the protests were not widespread. “They aren’t happening across all of L.A. They aren’t even happening across all of downtown L.A.,” he said. “They’re happening in a pocket of downtown, mostly around federal buildings.”

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