The president claimed, without giving evidence, that the protesters were “paid” agitators, that the Los Angeles police asked for the National Guard, and that swaths of the city were under gang control.

They are trying to strike a careful balance on issues where Republicans have held a political advantage in recent years.

President Donald Trump’s deployment of military troops to California is forcing Democrats back onto politically perilous turf, as they look for ways to condemn Trump’s actions without being drawn into a broad debate over immigration or tying themselves to the chaotic scenes emerging from Los Angeles.

A U.S. appeals court on Thursday allowed President Donald Trump to maintain his deployment of National Guard troops in Los Angeles amid protests over stepped-up immigration enforcement, temporarily pausing a lower court ruling that blocked the mobilization.

The first US Marines ordered by Donald Trump to Los Angeles will deploy Friday, the Pentagon said, raising the stakes in a standoff that pits the president against protesters claiming