Legal scholars say Trump’s memo authorizing the deployment of National Guard and Marines may stretch presidential powers beyond their limits

President Donald Trump has publicly contemplated invoking a law that would allow him to use the military for almost unlimited domestic law enforcement nationwide in response to at-times violent protests in Los Angeles over immigration crackdowns.

President Donald Trump on Tuesday did not rule out invoking the Insurrection Act if necessary to squash violence at the Los Angeles protests. “If there’s an insurrection, I would certainly invoke it,” Trump said.