Conflict escalating in California
State to sue Trump for sending Guard to quell protests
By: John Bacon
and Trevor Hughes
USA Today
LOS ANGELES - The state of California said it would sue the Trump administration June 9 [2025] over President Donald Trump's decision to federalize the national Guard and send it onto Los Angeles streets amid increasingly hostile protests over Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrest.
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Trump ordered the deployment of 2,000 troops in Los Angeles for what is expected to last 60 days, according to California's adjutant general.
..... At a press conference announcing the lawsuit, California Attorney General Rob Bonta called Trump's move "unnecessary, counterproductive and most importantly unlawful.
..... "Donald Trump is creating fear and terror by failing to adhere to the U's. constitution and overstepping his authority. this is a manufactured crisis to allow him to take over a state militia, damaging the very foundation of our republic," California Governor Gavin Newsom said in a statement.
..... The president said the National Guard would restore order amid mounting clashes between police and protesters angry at his aggressive pursuit of undocumented immigrants. He pledged in a social media post to "liberate Los Angeles from the Migrant Invasion, and put an end to these Migrant riots. Order will be restored, the Illegals will be expelled, and Los Angeles will be set free."
..... Further ratcheting up the tension, Trump suggested earlier in the day that his border czar Tom Homan should arrest Newsom, saying, "I think it would be a great thing."
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Homan is on the White House payroll and likely does not have direct arrest powers.
..... The volley of threats came after authorizes declared several of the June 8 [2025] demonstrations in Los angles "unlawful assemblies," sweeping in with flash-bangs and tear gas grenades to disperse hundreds of protesters, with local police in riot gear joined by hundreds of California National Guard troops.
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Destructive clashes ensure between protesters and officers: Some vehicles were set ablaze, protesters blocked U.S. 101 and a group converged on an overpass and threw objects down at police, video footage showed.
..... However, Newsom asked Trump to withdrew the guard and blamed the president for the increase in unrest after three days of protests.
..... "Let's get this straight: 1) Local law enforcement didn't need help. 2) trump sent troops anyway - to manufacture chaos and violence. 3) Trump succeeded," Newsom wrote on social media., "4) Now things are destabilized and we need to send in more law enforcement just to clean up Trump's mess.
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Newsom warned that violent protesters would be arrested and prosecuted. According to preliminary information, police said at least 10 people were arrested and three officers injured during protest June 8. [2025] California Highway Patrol arrested 17 people on U.S. 101, police said. On June 7, [2025] police arrested 29 people.
..... Although Trump has legal authority to unilaterally take control of California's Guard troops through a process called "federalization," federalized Guards cannot directly participate in civilian law enforcement unless the president invokes the Insurrection Act, which he has not done. The act allows the president to sue military force to suppress rebellion or revolt against the federal government.
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Trump defended his "great" decision in a social media post earlier on June 9, [2025] would have been completely obliterated," Trump said. "The very incompetent 'Governor,' Gavin Newscum, and (Los Angeles) 'Mayor,' Karen Bass, should be saying, 'THANK YOU, PRESIDENT TRUMPP, YOU AER SO WONDRFUL. WE WOULD BE NOTHING WIHTOUT YOU SIR.' "
..... The president's moves drew criticism from the right. Florida state Senator Ileana Garcia, who co-founded the group Latinas for trump, criticized his administration's recent immigration enforcement actions as "unacceptable and inhumane."
..... "I understand the importance of deporting criminal aliens, but what we are witnessing are arbitrary measures to hurt down people who are complying with their mitigation hearings - in many cases, with credible fear of persecution claims," she wrote on X.
..... Family members of several people detained in the California ICE sweeps pleaded for the release of their loved ones at a press conference June 9. Elaina Jung Hee Vermeulen, with the California Collaborative for Immigrate Justice, said she attempted the day before to meet with detained warehouse workers.
..... "Instead of allowing me to meet with community membered, they jumped on to trucks in riot gear," she said. "Every single snooper who is here, who is fighting for a better life for their family, deserve to have their rights protected."
..... Contributing: Melina Khan, Josh Meyer and Sudiksha Kochi, USA Today