California filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, claiming that the deployment of the state’s National Guard in Los Angeles during demonstrations against federal immigration sweeps was “an unmistakable step toward authoritarianism.”
Attorney General Rob Bonta and California Governor Gavin Newsom stated Monday that they have sued the Trump administration to stop the “illegal and unnecessary takeover” of the state’s National Guard, claiming it “has needlessly escalated chaos and violence in the Los Angeles region.”
According to a news release from the governor’s office on Monday, the lawsuit, which names President Donald Trump, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and the Department of Defense, asserted that the takeover was unwarranted and violated the US Constitution, surpassing the president’s Title 10 authority. This was in addition to the fact that the takeover happened without the governor’s input or consent, as required by federal law, according to Xinhua news agency.
Initially, immigration enforcement actions sparked the protests. Administration officials have concentrated their efforts in recent days on large cities dominated by Democrats, such as New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles.
As some protesters tossed objects and police retaliated with pepper balls and flash-bang devices, tensions between the two groups intensified on Friday.
Trump responded on Saturday by ordering 2,000 soldiers of the National Guard to deploy. With expanding numbers and more clashes between protesters and police, the demonstrations grew more intense on Sunday.
“President Trump’s order calling federalised National Guard troops into Los Angeles – over the objections of the Governor and local law enforcement – is unnecessary and counterproductive,” Bonta said in a statement on Monday.
“For his own political purposes, the president is attempting to sow disarray and disaster on the ground. We do not take the federalization of the California National Guard lightly since it is an abuse of the President’s legal authority. “We’re requesting that a court halt the illegal, unprecedented order,” Bonta stated.
Trump is “intentionally causing chaos, terrorizing communities, and endangering the principles of our great democracy,” according to Newsom, who called the National Guard deployment “a manufactured crisis.”
It is clearly a move in the direction of authoritarianism. The governor declared, “We will not allow this to continue.”
Trump said on social media after the lawsuit was announced that if demonstrators “spit” at National Guard personnel, his administration would “hit” back.
“I promise you they will be hit harder than they have ever been hit before,” he stated in his letter. “Such disrespect will not be tolerated!”
On Monday, Trump advocated for Newsom’s arrest. “The President of the United States just called for the arrest of a sitting Governor,” Newsom said in a social media post. I hoped that I would never see this day in America.
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