US President Donald Trump said that the National Guard sent to Los Angeles would ensure “very strict order and law and order,” while leaving open the possibility of deploying troops to other cities, AFP reported.

“You have thugs, and we're not going to let them get away with it,” he told reporters about the protests against immigration raids in California.

“I think you're going to see very strict order and law enforcement,” Trump added.

The US president spoke to reporters on the tarmac at Morristown airport before boarding Air Force One, bound for Camp David.

Minutes earlier, soldiers fired tear gas and repelled several protesters outside a detention center in Los Angeles.

Hundreds of National Guard troops were deployed despite objections from California Governor Gavin Newsom, who said the measure was intended to “create a crisis.”

Trump administration officials promised to take strict measures against the demonstrations, which have been going on for two days after US immigration services began operations in the Los Angeles area, sparking angry reactions from residents.

The White House announced that Trump had invoked a rarely used law known as “Title 10,” which allows for the federalization of the National Guard in cases of “insurrection or threat of insurrection against the authority of the United States government.”

The US Insurrection Act also gives the president broad powers to deploy military forces within the country and use them to maintain order, although Trump has not invoked it before.

When asked if he would do so, Trump added: “We are looking at deploying troops everywhere. We will not let this happen in our country.”

When asked what the criteria would be for sending Marines instead of the National Guard, Trump replied that he would make that decision.

“The criteria are what I think they should be,” he said. | BGNES