California to sue Donald Trump for deploying National Guard in LA

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California governor Gavin Newsom has vowed to sue Donald Trump for deploying the National Guard to Los Angeles, as authorities braced themselves for further protests against raids on suspected illegal immigrants.

The intensifying clash between Trump and the governor of the US’s most populous state came after about 300 members of the National Guard arrived in Los Angeles on Sunday. The troops took up positions downtown, where thousands gathered to protest against raids by federal immigration agents in the the state. The guardsmen used tear gas on the crowds, witnesses said.

Demonstrations gathered pace on Sunday afternoon, as Waymo taxis were set on fire and a stretch of a major roadway was blocked by a large crowd. Police declared downtown LA to be an “unlawful assembly area” and arrested dozens over the weekend.

The dramatic scenes were the latest escalation in a broader stand-off between the White House and state and local leaders, as Trump and his allies pressed ahead with their sweeping plans to strengthen the power of the president, including by cracking down on millions of undocumented immigrants.

Newsom, a Democrat, blamed Trump’s decision to “federalise” the California National Guard — or transfer the military troops from state to federal control — for making matters worse. Trump has authorised 2,000 guardsmen to be deployed.

“This is exactly what Donald Trump wanted,” Newsom said in a post on X. “He flamed the fires and illegally acted to federalise the National Guard. The order he signed doesn’t just apply to CA. It will allow him to go into ANY STATE and do the same thing. We’re suing him.”

But Trump fired back by accusing Newsom of lying about the situation. The president insisted Los Angeles would have been “completely obliterated” without the National Guard.

“The very incompetent ‘Governor,’ Gavin Newscum, and ‘Mayor,’ Karen Bass, should be saying, ‘THANK YOU, PRESIDENT TRUMP, YOU ARE SO WONDERFUL. WE WOULD BE NOTHING WITHOUT YOU, SIR.’” Trump said in a post to his Truth Social platform on Monday. “Instead, they choose to lie to the People of California and America by saying that we weren’t needed, and that these are ‘peaceful protests.””

“Just one look at the pictures and videos of the Violence and Destruction tells you all you have to know,” Trump added.

Federalising the National Guard is unusual. President George HW Bush sent guardsmen to Los Angeles in 1992 to control riots following the beating by police officers of Rodney King — a move that had been requested by California’s then governor, Pete Wilson. 

This time Trump overruled the wishes of Newsom, one of his chief political rivals. Newsom, the former mayor of San Francisco who has been governor of California since 2019, is one of the most prominent Democratic politicians and seen as a potential presidential candidate in 2028.

A US president last deployed a state’s National Guard without being asked by its governor in 1965, when Lyndon Johnson sent troops to protect civil rights demonstrators in Selma, Alabama.

Pete Hegseth, defence secretary, said the marines were on “high alert” and suggested they could be deployed in LA, where isolated protests began on Friday and lasted through the weekend. On Sunday evening, Trump did not rule out sending in marines. “We’ll send whatever we need to ensure there’s law and order.”

In an interview with progressive YouTube podcaster Brian Tyler Cowen, Newsom said Trump’s actions in California were a “preview of things to come”. He added: “Donald Trump is unhinged right now.”