California Gov. Gavin Newsom has taken a bold shot across the bow of President Donald Trump's administration, firing a salvo of legal action in response to this week's order authorizing the deployment of active-duty military troops to Los Angeles. On Tuesday, Newsom sued the federal government, pushing back on Trump's call for Marines and National Guard troops to calm protests aimed at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) buildings.
Newsom contends that the president's call to use the military on American soil without California's consent is both unconstitutional and an abuse of federal power. The governor's suit alleges that this runs afoul of the Posse Comitatus Act, a law meant to preclude the military from serving as domestic law enforcement. In Newsom's view, Trump's action is no mere misstep; it's an "illegal and dangerous escalation" that puts the very fabric of American democracy at risk.
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"This is more than just incompetence, it's a deliberate attempt to attack the values of our great state and our nation," Newsom said, leaving little doubt that he interprets the deployment as a knowing and alarming abuse of power. His message is a rallying call to all governors, whatever their politics, to come together to oppose what he describes as an "unmistakable step toward authoritarianism."
The legal action plays out as nationwide protests have flared up over immigration policies and enforcement actions across the country, from Los Angeles to Chicago, New York, and Atlanta. President Trump defended the decision to send about 2,000 troops, 1,200 Marines, and 800 National Guard members to Los Angeles by telling reporters: "If our troops didn't go into Los Angeles, I think that you would have had a much worse problem in the city. Trump described local officials as having "lost control" and blamed California for "harboring lawlessness."
Troops were dispatched to LA on Monday evening, positioning armored vehicles near government buildings, and there were confrontations between police and protesters, but serious injuries were not sustained. The Pentagon has called the mission "limited in scope and duration," but the stakes are high: legally and politically.
So, for Newsom, this lawsuit isn't just about preventing a single military deployment; using the courts, he's trying to establish a limit on what the president can and can't do. This case may set an important precedent about when, how, and why the U.S. military may be deployed within the nation's borders. It is a showdown that weighs federal authority with state sovereignty and plays out in real-time, in the crucible of a national furor over immigration and civil rights.
For now, expect the bad blood between Congress and the White House to boil over even further as President Trump's birthday celebrations and tentative plans for a glitzy military parade in Washington, D.C., to celebrate the U.S. Army's 250th are a little over a month away. So it's game on for the court battle Newsom's challenge ignited, which threatens to define this struggle over power, dissent, and the future of democracy itself.
In short, California's governor has sent a clear signal: There is a line that shouldn't be crossed when it comes to military force on American streets, and now he's prepared to take it to court.
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