‘The stuff of dictatorships’: Trump admin threat to deploy military to LA protest met with angry reactions

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Donald Trump’s threats to send the National Guard to Los Angeles to squash anti-ICE protests have drawn a resounding negative reaction from Democrats, including California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who called the president’s plan “deranged behavior.”

The White House on Saturday said that 2,000 National Guard troops will be sent to arrest protesters as tensions grew during a second day of clashes between hundreds of protesters and federal agents following a series of immigration raids by ICE agents on Friday.

While the administration said it would deploy the National Guard to “address the lawlessness that has been allowed to fester,” it was not immediately clear when the troops would arrive.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth threatened the action, writing on X, “If violence continues, active-duty Marines at Camp Pendleton will also be mobilized — they are on high alert.”

Meanwhile, California Gov. Gavin Newsom and scores of other Democrats took issue with the Trump administration’s plans to handle the protests.

Democrats have railed against President Donald Trump over his plans to send 2,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles to make arrests at anti-ICE protests. (AFP via Getty Images)

”The Secretary of Defense is now threatening to deploy active-duty Marines on American soil against its own citizens,” Newsom wrote. “This is deranged behavior.”

In an earlier message, Newsom called Trump’s plan to deploy 2,000 National Guard troops “purposefully inflammatory.”

California Democratic Senator Alex Padilla agreed with the sentiment, writing, “Couldn’t agree more. Using the National Guard this way is a completely inappropriate and misguided mission.

He continued: “The Trump Administration is just sowing more chaos and division in our communities.”

Senator Adam Schiff said the Trump administration’s calling of the National Guard without the governor’s authorization is “unprecedented.”

“This action is designed to inflame tensions, sow chaos, and escalate the situation,” he wrote, noting that if the Guard is needed, Newsom would ask for it.

“Violence must stop, and we need to keep the focus on protecting fundamental rights,” Schiff said. “There is nothing President Trump would like more than a violent confrontation with protestors to justify the unjustifiable — invocation of the Insurrection Act or some form of martial law.”

A car burns as law enforcement clashes with demonstrators during a protest following federal immigration operations, in the Compton neighborhood of Los Angeles, California on June 7, 2025 (AFP via Getty Images)

California’s Attorney General Rob Bonta took to X to let Californians know: “There is no emergency and the President’s order calling in the National Guard is unnecessary and counterproductive.”

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass stopped short of criticizing the Trump Administration, but emphasized that no troops have been deployed yet.

“Just to be clear, the National Guard has not been deployed in the City of Los Angeles,” she said.

Local leaders in California also expressed outrage over the violent, caught-on-video arrest of David Huerta, the president of the labor union SEIU California.

Huerta was hospitalized with injuries after officers aggressively knocked him to the ground during his arrest at the protest Friday.

Democrats from outside the Golden State also took issue with Trump’s orders.

Hawaii Democratic Senator Brian Schatz slammed the Trump administration for the move, calling the threat to call in troops “the stuff of dictatorships.”

Los Angeles County Sheriff deputies stand guard, during a standoff by protesters and law enforcement following multiple detentions by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), in the Los Angeles County city of Paramount, California, U.S., June 7, 2025 (REUTERS)

“There is literally no reason to have active duty Marines respond to a street protest,” he wrote.

“Whether or not this takes a terrible turn depends partly on the conduct and the discipline of law enforcement, of community members being peaceful, of media members speaking truth to power, and all of us agreeing that the use of the military for this purpose is the stuff of dictatorships across the planet and throughout history.”

Connecticut Democratic Senator Chris Murphy noted on X: “Important to remember that Trump isn’t trying to heal or keep the peace. He is looking to inflame and divide. His movement doesn’t believe in democracy or protest – and if they get a chance to end the rule of law they will take it. None of this is on the level.”

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