For months during the 2024 campaign, Donald Trump promised to use the military domestically. His campaign telegraphed it via news coverage and reports from friendly nonprofits; Trump mused about using soldiers against protests.

ICE detained 40 individuals on Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket as immigration crackdowns have increased around the country.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said President Trump called in the National Guard with the expectation that it would "hopefully prevent and deter some of this violence.”