Trump says he will 'liberate' Los Angeles in speech to mark the 250th anniversary of the Army

FORT BRAGG, N.C. — President Donald Trump called protesters in Los Angeles ''animals'' and ''a foreign enemy'' in a speech at Fort Bragg on Tuesday as he defended deploying the military on demonstrators opposed to his immigration enforcement raids and as he vowed to ''liberate'' the West Coast city.

Trump, in his most aggressive language yet regarding the protests, used a speech ostensibly supposed to be used to recognize the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army to denounce the protesters while repeating his false statements about the 2020 election being rigged and attacking the previous commander in chief, former President Joe Biden.

The Republican president, who sees the military as a critical tool for domestic goals, has used the recent protests in Los Angeles as an opportunity to deploy the National Guard and U.S. Marines over the objections of California's Democratic governor. Protesters blocked a major freeway and set cars on fire over the weekend in Los Angeles, but the demonstrations in the city of 4 million people have largely been centered in several blocks of downtown.

''We will not allow an American city to be invaded and conquered by a foreign enemy. That's what they are,'' Trump said Tuesday.

Trump's heated rhetoric came as he has left open the possibility of invoking the Insurrection Act, one of the most extreme emergency powers available to the president. It authorizes him to deploy military forces inside the U.S. to suppress rebellion or domestic violence or to enforce the law in certain situations.

Trump received plenty of cheers from the crowd, which laughed at the president's jokes and delighted in his dancing to his campaign anthem of '' YMCA.'' However, some members of the audience were uneasy with certain aspects of his remarks.

Robin Boothe, who voted for Trump and works on the base as an audiology assistant, said the speech was ''classic Trump.'' However, she also found it to be too partisan, especially his comments on Los Angeles.

''I thought that was better left for a news conference than what we were celebrating today,'' the 50-year-old said.

The president called Los Angeles ''a trash heap'' with ''entire neighborhoods under control'' of criminals and said the federal government would ''use every asset at our disposal to quell the violence and restore law and order.''

''We will liberate Los Angeles and make it free, clean and safe again,'' Trump said.

Trump authorized the deployment of 4,000 National Guard soldiers to the city against the wishes of California Gov. Gavin Newsom. About 700 Marines were deployed to the Los Angeles area but had not yet been sent to respond to the protests.

Newsom asked a federal court Tuesday to block Trump from using the military in his city. California leaders accused Trump of fanning protesters' anger and stoking the unrest.

In an address Tuesday evening, Newsom warned: ''California may be first, but it clearly will not end here. Other states are next. Democracy is next. Democracy is under assault before our eyes.''

Trump also announced his administration was restoring the names of seven military bases that were given the monikers of Confederate leaders until being changed by the Biden administration. Fort Pickett, Fort Robert E. Lee and Fort A.P. Hill in Virginia, Fort Hood in Texas, Fort Gordon in Georgia, Fort Rucker in Alabama and Fort Polk in Louisiana will have their names changed back, Trump said.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has already brought back the names of Fort Bragg and Fort Benning in Georgia.

''Can you believe they changed that name in the last administration for a little bit?'' Trump said. ''We'll forget all about that.''

As they did when they changed back Fort Bragg and Fort Benning, Defense officials announced Tuesday that they had identified service members with the same last names in order to make the change and not have the bases officially carry Confederate-related names.

Before he spoke, Trump watched the U.S. Army demonstrate a missile strike, a helicopter assault and a building raid, a preview of the kind of show of American military might he's expected to display in the nation's capital for a massive military parade this weekend.

Trump has promoted the Army's anniversary as a reason to hold the parade on Saturday, which is also his 79th birthday. Tanks and other vehicles will roll down city streets in a reminder of how the Republican president is reshaping the armed forces after returning to the White House this year.

''I think it's going to be great,'' Trump told reporters at the White House earlier Tuesday. ''We're going to celebrate our country for a change.''

As a backdrop to the parade, ''No Kings Day'' protests are planned across the country on Saturday to push back against what critics see as the administration's draconian policies. Trump said earlier Tuesday that there would be more immigration raids and that any additional protests would be met with even greater force, including those who show up at the parade.

If they do, Trump said, ''they will be met with very big force.''

''I haven't even heard about a protest but you know, this is people that hate our country. But they will be met with very heavy force.''

Newsom weighed in Tuesday on the parade, accusing Trump of forcing the military ''to put on a vulgar display to celebrate his birthday, just as other failed dictators have done in the past.''

Fort Bragg, which was briefly Fort Liberty and is near Fayetteville, North Carolina, serves as headquarters for the U.S. Army Special Operations Command. Highly trained units like the Green Berets and the 82nd Airborne are based there.

The atmosphere resembled a state fair with military flair. Inflatable slides and attractions for children were set up in a field, with artillery, trucks and helicopters parked on another section of the lawn. Right outside the security checkpoint — but still on the base — two stands were selling Trump political hats, T-shirts and other paraphernalia.

Hegseth and Army Secretary Dan Driscoll were also at Tuesday's event, along with service members, veterans and their families.

Driscoll, who spoke to the crowd before Trump arrived, called the president ''the greatest recruiter in our Army's history.''

Hegseth told the crowd that the U.S. is ''restoring the warrior ethos'' to its armed forces.

''We're not a college or a university. We're not interested in your woke garbage and political correctness,'' Hegseth said, drawing cheers.

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Price reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Aamer Madhani and Lolita Baldor in Washington contributed to this report. Follow the AP's coverage of President Donald Trump at https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump.

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This story has been corrected to reflect that the 82nd Airborne Division, not the U.S. Army Rangers, is based at Fort Bragg.