WASHINGTON, DC—Today, after President Trump ordered more than 700 active-duty U.S. Marines into Los Angeles against the will of the California governor and Los Angeles mayor, U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), the Ranking Member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, issued the following statement:

“I am gravely troubled by President Trump’s order to deploy active-duty U.S. Marines into an American city against the will of its governor and mayor.

“Let me clear: the ongoing violence in Los Angeles is unacceptable. Public safety and law enforcement are paramount, and LA’s state and local law enforcement must continue working to restore peace.

“But the president is forcibly overriding the authority of the governor and mayor and using the military as a political weapon. This unprecedented move threatens to turn a tense situation into a national crisis.

“Since our nation’s founding, the American people have been perfectly clear: we do not want the military conducting law enforcement on U.S. soil.

“President Trump must stop testing the boundaries of the executive branch’s power and attempting to use the military domestically. Every American, regardless of their politics, should reject the idea of a U.S. president deploying active-duty forces against the will of state and local leaders. The President must immediately cease this reckless operation and place the well-being of our nation above his own political ambitions.”