NEW YORK, June 9. /TASS/. California Governor Gavin Newsom has demanded that US President Donald Trump’s administration cancel the memorandum on deploying the National Guard in Los Angeles to counter protest rallies that escalated into public disturbances and restore his authority over the National Guard within the state.
"I have formally requested the Trump administration rescind their unlawful deployment of troops in Los Angeles county and return them to my command. We didn’t have a problem until Trump got involved. This is a serious breach of state sovereignty – inflaming tensions while pulling resources from where they’re actually needed. Rescind the order. Return control to California," he wrote on the X social network.
He also posted a copy of an official letter from the governor’s office to US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. It criticizes Trump’s decision to deploy the National Guard, brands the memorandum itself in circumvention of the governor’s office as "unlawful" and calls into question the rationality of reinforcements amid protest rallies in Los Angeles.
Earlier, Democrat governors from 22 states criticized Trump’s decision to deploy California National Guard troops to suppress the protests in Los Angeles. In their view, by threatening to send in Marines to handle the unrest, Trump is showing a lack of confidence in local law enforcement.
Protest rallies against mass arrests of illegal migrants in Los Angeles have continued for three consecutive days. White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller labeled the demonstrations and disturbances an "insurrection" and criticized the stance of the Los Angeles Police, whose chief declined to take part in mass deportations. Bypassing the state’s governor, Trump ordered the deployment of 2,000 National Guard troops to control the situation. They began arriving in the city on the morning of June 8; currently, according to US media, around 300 personnel have arrived.
According to officials, two police officers were injured on Sunday during the Los Angeles protests. Law enforcement is working to clear the city's main transport artery, a section of which remains blocked by demonstrators. Local reports say protesters have clashed with police, hurling bottles and stones, and have set fire to at least five motor vehicles.