U.S. Border Patrol El Centro Sector Chief Gregory Bovino issued a stark warning to Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass on Monday following an immigration raid at a city park, saying the agency “will go anywhere, anytime we want in Los Angeles.”

Newsweek reached out to Border Patrol via email for additional comment.

Why It Matters

Federal immigration raids in Los Angeles ignited a standoff at MacArthur Park on Monday as demonstrators confronted Border Patrol agents. Tensions escalated when Bass, a Democrat, arrived at the scene to demand an immediate halt to the operation, which involved military members and border agents on horseback.

President Donald Trump campaigned on mass deportations and has made immigration a key pillar in his second term. Trump appointed Tom Homan as his border czar to help carry out these initiatives.

What To Know

The MacArthur Park confrontation highlighted deepening divisions between local government leaders and federal authorities over the enforcement of immigration law—particularly in sanctuary cities such as Los Angeles, where local officials have repeatedly opposed federal immigration crackdowns.

Deployments to Los Angeles have underscored the rising sense of urgency and controversy, inflaming debate over the use of military force in domestic immigration actions.

In a post to X, formerly Twitter, on Monday, Fox News National Correspondent Bill Melugin posted a comment he received from Bovino about the raid at MacArthur Park.

Bovino spoke with Bass about the raid, Melugin reports. The border chief added, “I don’t work for Karen Bass. Better get used to us now, cause this is going to be normal very soon. We will go anywhere, anytime we want in Los Angeles.”

Bovino then responded to Melugin on X, saying, “Nice to talk with you again today, Bill. We may well go back to MacArthur Park or other places in and around Los Angeles. Illegal aliens had the opportunity to self deport, now we’ll help things along a bit. 🇺🇸 🇺🇲”

Bass took to social media to highlight the immigration enforcement, saying the “second” she heard about it, she went to the park to speak with officials.

Protests in June also broke out in Los Angeles after several Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids throughout the city. Trump sent National Guard troops and Marines to the City of Angels, deeming they were necessary to help control the unrest, against Democratic California Governor Gavin Newsom‘s wishes.

Newsom and state officials have repeatedly insisted that the deployment of National Guard members leaves wildfire response teams critically shorthanded, with California Guard fire crews previously reported to be operating at just 40 percent capacity.

When reached for comment about Monday’s raid, Newsom’s office sent Newsweek his remarks from an earlier news conference, in which the governor called the enforcement “a disgrace.”

“I want folks to know we have your back,” he said. “And we’ll continue to come back and do what we can to protect our diverse communities, to protect the spirit that defines the best of this city and our state and to push back against this cruelty.”

What People Are Saying

Bass posted to X on Sunday: “What is happening in Los Angeles is not normal. It is not normal to send in the National Guard without a request from the governor. It is not normal to conduct indiscriminate raids on our immigrant population. Let LA return to normal. Get the National Guard out.”

Newsom said on X Monday: “What a disgrace. What theater. Horseback running through kids soccer fields — says everything you need to know about the state of mind, the polluted heart of the President, and the polluted heart of Stephen Miller. We will continue to protect our diverse communities — pushing back against this cruelty being pushed by the President of the United States.”

Republican Senator Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, on X Monday in reaction to a video of Bass calling for federal agents to leave MacArthur Park: “Lock her up.”

What Happens Next

The number of arrests or detentions related to Monday’s immigration enforcement is immediately unclear.