Protesters are seen through smoke near the metropolitan detention center of downtown Los Angeles, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
California Gov.
Gavin Newsom
, a Democrat, blamed Republican President
Donald Trump
for the violence and unrest in Los Angeles at protests against ICE, saying the state “didn’t have a problem until Trump got involved.” Newsom demanded that Trump rescind what the governor called an “unlawful” National Guard deployment — a move he described as the “act of a dictator.”
Chaos has broken out in the streets of Los Angeles
over the weekend, with organized groups attempting to obstruct ICE operations, protesting at detention facilities, and getting into physical confrontations with authorities. There have also been reports of looting and vandalism across the city, purportedly related to and as a result of the violent reactions to immigration laws and enforcement.
Trump deployed the National Guard, which Rep.
Maxine Waters
suggested on CNN would
lead to the shooting of protesters
. He also posted on social media that he is directing federal agencies to “liberate” the city from what he called “
violent, insurrectionist mobs
” in a Truth Social post on Sunday afternoon.
Gov. Newsom blamed the situation in total on Trump when posting on X, first in a message that also included his demand to have the deployment order rescinded, and then in a second post to X that was a quote retweet of a clip of Trump saying any officials who “stand in the way” of his restoring order will be arrested.
“I have formally requested the Trump Administration rescind their unlawful deployment of troops in Los Angeles county and return them to my command,” Newsom wrote in his first statement.
“We didn’t have a problem until Trump got involved,” he claimed. “This is a serious breach of state sovereignty — inflaming tensions while pulling resources from where they’re actually needed.”
He then closed with his demand: “Rescind the order. Return control to California.”
The second post was even more explicit in not just blaming Trump for the chaos but saying it was deliberate.
Newsom made a three point list, writing:
– Inciting and provoking violence
– Creating mass chaos
– Militarizing cities
– Arresting opponents
He then said, “These are the acts of a dictator, not a President.”
The official demand attached to the first tweet was addressed to Secretary of Defense
Pete Hegseth
and signed by Newsom legal affairs secretary
David Sapp
, and was included as two screenshots.
Titled “Re: Federalization of the California National Guard”
the document reads
:
Dear Secretary Hegseth:
On June 7, 2025, President Trump issued a memorandum to your office entitled “Department of Defense Security for the Protection of Department of Homeland Security Functions.” The memorandum purports to invoke 10 U.S.C. § 12406 to “call into Federal service members and units of the National Guard . . . to temporarily protect ICE and other United States Government personnel who are performing Federal functions, including the enforcement of Federal law, and to protect Federal property.” The memorandum further directs “actions as necessary for the Secretary of Defense to coordinate with the Governors of the States and the National Guard Bureau in identifying and ordering into Federal service the appropriate members and units of the National Guard under this authority.”
Section 12406 states that “the President may call into Federal service members and units of the National Guard of any State in such numbers as he considers necessary” to (1) repel an invasion of the United States by a foreign nation; (2) suppress a rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States; or (3) execute the laws of the United States when the President is unable to do so with regular forces. Section 12406 further states that “[o]rders for these purposes shall be issued through the governors of the States.”
Last night, the Adjutant General of California received a memorandum from your office with the subject line “Calling Members of the California National Guard into Federal Service,” which states that “[t]wo thousand members of the California National Guard will be called into Federal service effective immediately for a period of 60 days.” Notably, this directive did not issue “through the governor[] of the State[]” as required by section 12406; the Department of Defense did not transmit this directive to the Office of the Governor, nor was it approved or ordered by the Governor of California. This directive is also inconsistent with the President’s memorandum, which anticipates “coordinat[ion] with the Governors of the States” in identifying and ordering units of the National Guard into federal service.
At present, law enforcement authorities from the City and County of Los Angeles are safeguarding public safety, and, as demonstrated by the robust law enforcement response yesterday evening to protect federal facilities, local law enforcement resources are sufficient to maintain order. In dynamic and fluid situations such as the one in Los Angeles, State and local authorities are the most appropriate ones to evaluate the need for resources to safeguard life and property. Indeed, the decision to deploy the National Guard, without appropriate training or orders, risks seriously escalating the situation.
There is currently no need for the National Guard to be deployed in Los Angeles, and to do so in this unlawful manner and for such a lengthy period is a serious breach of state sovereignty that seems intentionally designed to inflame the situation, while simultaneously depriving the State from deploying these personnel and resources where they are truly required. Accordingly, we ask that you immediately rescind your order and return the National Guard to its rightful control by the State of California, to be deployed as appropriate when necessary.
This is a developing story and may be updated with additional information or subsequent replies.
The post
‘Acts of a Dictator’: Newsom Attacks Trump for ‘Creating’ L.A. Chaos – ‘Didn’t Have Problem Until He Got Involved’
first appeared on
SnapUpdateNow
.