WATCH: Hegseth says troops could be in LA for 60 days, cost $134 million

Pentagon officials told Congress on Tuesday that troops sent by President Donald Trump to Los Angeles in response to protests against federal immigration raids would be there for 60 days, at a cost of $134 million.

WATCH: Lawmakers question Hegseth on deploying troops to LA and Pentagon spending

“We stated very publicly that it’s 60 days because we want to ensure that those rioters, looters and thugs on the other side assaulting our police officers know that we’re not going anywhere,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said during an exchange with Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., during a House Appropriations subcommittee hearing. “We’re here to maintain the peace on behalf of law enforcement officers in Los Angeles, which Gavin Newsom won’t do.”

When Aguliar asked about the cost of sending the National Guard and U.S. Marines to Los Angeles, Hegseth turned to the Pentagon’s acting comptroller/CFO, Bryn Woollacott MacDonnell. She said $134 million was “the current estimated cost” and will come out of operations and maintenance funds.

Earlier in the hearing, Hegseth declined to provide a specific dollar amount when asked about how much the deployment would cost.

California has sued the Trump administration for calling up state National Guard troops, saying the president has overstepped his authority. Some legal experts argue the president’s justification for calling up the National Guard is untested legal theory. On Monday, LA Police Chief Jim McDonnell said police response to the protests were complicated by federal law enforcement.

Aguilar later asked Hegseth how the president justified deploying the National Guard to Los Angeles. The congressman, whose district includes San Bernardino and a region east of Los Angeles, noted that federal law allows the president to call up the National Guard in three instances: when the U.S. is invaded or in danger of being invaded, when there’s a rebellion against the authority of the U.S. government, or when the president is unable to execute the law with regular forces.

“I don’t know, you just read it yourself and people can listen themselves, but it sounds like all three to me,” Hegseth said. “If you’ve got millions of illegals and you don’t know where they’re coming from, they’re waving flags from foreign countries and assaulting police officers and law enforcement officers, that’s a problem.”

“You just said the president is unable to execute laws of the United States?” Aguilar asked.

“The governor of California is unable to execute the laws of the United States,” Hegseth said.

Aguilar said the law gives authority for these orders to state governors.

“You and I both know that President Trump has all the authorities necessary and, thankfully, he’s willing to do it,” Hegseth replied.