LOS ANGELES − Two people have been charged with throwing firebombs during five days of protests that have rocked a downtown section of the city and prompted President Trump' controversial decision to send 4,

Pete Hegseth was met with bipartisan criticism Wednesday during the Senate defense appropriations subcommittee hearing.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stood by the Trump administration's National Guard federalization and U.S. Marines deployment to the Los Angeles anti-ICE riots.

Hegseth has deployed thousands of troops to Los Angeles in recent days to suppress protests against the Trump administration's deportations. He has faced criticism from California Gov. Gavin Newsom and other Democrats who have said the troops are adding fuel to the fire and are not being put to good use.

The Pentagon chief stumbled when pressed on the legal underpinning for the deployment of 700 Marines to California.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is being ridiculed by social media users after failing to cite the provision of the Constitution which provides a Presidential administration with the authority to deploy active duty Marines to state neighborhoods.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth defended his decision to order troops to provide security during federal immigration raids in Los Angeles.

Senate Democrats sought to pick apart the Trump administration’s legal rationale for sending National Guard troops and active-duty Marines into Los Angeles this week in what they called a wildly out-of-proportion response to sometimes violent protests against President Trump’s escalating immigration sweeps.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Saturday night that Marines at Camp Pendleton, about 100 miles south of Los Angeles, were on high alert.

The Pentagon has deployed 700 active-duty Marines and 4,000 National Guard troops to California in response to riots in Los Angeles over immigration raids.