{"id":14580,"date":"2025-06-19T22:27:28","date_gmt":"2025-06-19T22:27:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/latinosreadytovote.org\/?p=14580"},"modified":"2025-06-19T22:27:28","modified_gmt":"2025-06-19T22:27:28","slug":"california-republicans-hate-government-overreach-most-are-quiet-on-trumps-military-in-la","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/latinosreadytovote.org\/?p=14580","title":{"rendered":"California Republicans hate government \u2018overreach.\u2019 Most are quiet on Trump\u2019s military in LA"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

California Republicans who agreed to speak with CalMatters endorse President Donald Trump\u2019s military deployment in Los Angeles as necessary to save the state from its Democratic leadership.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

by Yue Stella Yu<\/a><\/em>, CALMATTERS<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

When is it OK for a president to use military forces on civilians in a state over the objections of their governor?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When that governor is Gavin Newsom, California Republican leaders say.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a rare move, President Donald Trump overrode Newsom and local leaders in sending 4,000 National Guard members and 700 active-duty Marines to Los Angeles in response to protests against the president\u2019s immigration enforcement. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

California is challenging Trump\u2019s order in federal court.<\/a> While the president argues that he has the sole authority to deploy the military, legal scholars and judges<\/a> have warned that the move risks intruding upon state sovereignty and tilting the constitutional balance of power between the federal and state governments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But most California Republican lawmakers, who have vehemently opposed \u201cgovernment overreach<\/a>,\u201d would not say where they stand on Trump\u2019s military intervention in Los Angeles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

CalMatters asked all 29 Republican lawmakers in the state Legislature whether they support Trump\u2019s troop deployment. Only six answered, and all sided with Trump. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Democrats had it coming, those lawmakers argued, because their lenient immigration and crime policies \u2014 including a 2017 state \u201csanctuary\u201d law<\/a> that limits local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement agents \u2014 forced Trump\u2019s hand. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt is the root cause of the rioting and violence that we are witnessing this year,\u201d state Sen. Marie Alvarado-Gil<\/a> of Modesto said of the sanctuary law in a video last week<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

State Republicans also seized on sporadic violent clashes, captured in viral videos on social media, as proof of Newsom and other Democrats\u2019 failure to rein in violence. The GOP lawmakers argued that\u2019s why Trump had to step in, even though local police had said they did not need help<\/a> from federal troops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat do you do when you have a governor who\u2019s not leading (and) is not doing anything about unrest and violence in his own state?\u201d said Assembly Republican Leader James Gallagher<\/a> of Chico.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But would the Republican lawmakers say the same if a Democratic president descended the military upon a red state over the head of its governor? Some said yes as others bit their tongues, arguing it should be judged on a case-by-case basis and refusing to entertain hypotheticals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt depends on the situation,\u201d Gallagher told CalMatters. \u201cWhat are the times when you can and when you can\u2019t? That\u2019s what the court\u2019s going to decide.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s no surprise that state Republicans are using the opportunity to slam Democrats on immigration and crime: Those strategies have worked for the minority party<\/a> in the past. It\u2019s also a chance for them to demonstrate their loyalty to Trump, who wields a definitive influence over the party. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But it is particularly worrisome when Republicans are aligned with Trump in a move to override state authority, which tears at the fabric of the U.S. Constitution<\/a>, said Eric Schickler, political science professor at the University of California, Berkeley.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf you think about what the framers were worried about when they created the Constitution, it\u2019s exactly this kind of dynamic,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s not an exaggeration to say the nature of the U.S. political system has changed. And it\u2019s changed not just because of Trump\u2019s force of will as an individual, but it\u2019s changed because members of his party, when he\u2019s asserted authority, have sided with him consistently.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That alignment could cost Republicans in 2026, said Mike Madrid, a longtime GOP strategist and a vocal critic of Trump. Polling in recent weeks<\/a> has shown that Trump\u2019s immigration policies and military deployment in Los Angeles are growingly unpopular<\/a> among Americans. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think people are seeing this as an immigration issue anymore. They are seeing it the way the governor has framed this, which is a constitutional issue, a federal overreach issue, a due process issue,\u201d Madrid said. \u201cThat puts Republicans on very troubling ground.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

California GOP lawmakers: Trump \u2018stepped up\u2019<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

While Trump\u2019s executive order told the troops to guard federal personnel and properties, he and his administration have also repeatedly suggested that the troops are there to crack down<\/a>. U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem last week even said the military was there to \u201cliberate the city from the socialists.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The military presence has stoked fear among legal experts and some law enforcement officials, who argue there is no legal standing for Trump\u2019s use of authority. Unleashing military forces on domestic protesters can also have a chilling effect, risk escalating the situation further<\/a> and create confusion among civilians<\/a>, they said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

CalMatters also reached out to U.S. Reps. David Valadao, Young Kim and Ken Calvert, three Republicans who will likely face fierce challenges from Democrats in 2026. None of them responded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While acknowledging California\u2019s sovereignty, some state Republican lawmakers told CalMatters Trump needed to intervene due to what they perceived as a lack of leadership from Newsom. They cited videos of brick-throwing, Molotov-cocktail-tossing protesters and made unsubstantiated claims<\/a> that paid agitators stoked violence among protesters \u2014 a claim Trump has made.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Assemblymember Jeff Gonzalez<\/a>, a Coachella Republican and the only incumbent lawmaker who is a retired Marine, initially would not say if the scale of the Los Angeles protests warranted federal intervention, stating he did not have the \u201cconfidential intelligence\u201d to weigh in. He also did not commit to supporting the same actions if they came from another president, arguing each situation is different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But when a CalMatters reporter pushed for comments, Gonzalez pointed to videos of violence as justification for Trump\u2019s deployment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen you have leaders that don\u2019t step up, someone needs to step up, and that\u2019s what took place,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

State Sen. Steven Choi<\/a> of Irvine told CalMatters that while he supports states\u2019 rights, when immigration agents face violence or interference, \u201cit is appropriate for federal authorities to protect both those agents and federal properties.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Tony Strickland<\/a>, a former mayor of Huntington Beach, said there is precedent for federalizing the California National Guard to quell domestic riots, referencing the 1992 turmoil in Los Angeles over the acquittal of police officers who severely beat Black activist Rodney King.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But in that example, then-President George H.W. Bush deployed troops at the request of then-Republican Gov. Pete Wilson and then-Democratic Mayor Tom Bradley. The riots were also far more violent, resulting in 63 deaths. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Strickland argued that deaths have been avoided in Los Angeles only because Trump sent in the military, echoing the president\u2019s assertion<\/a> that the city otherwise would have burned to the ground.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDo you wait till 63 people die before you call them in?\u201d Strickland said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Blaming California\u2019s sanctuary law<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Republicans argued that Trump\u2019s use of military force was necessary because of California\u2019s 2017 sanctuary state law, which has been upheld in federal court<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their logic goes like this: Had California police been more cooperative with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, federal agents wouldn\u2019t have had to arrest immigrants in the streets, Californians wouldn\u2019t have been so riled and Trump wouldn\u2019t have had to deploy troops to protect those agents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Under current law, local law enforcement can choose to alert federal immigration authorities about an upcoming release of an inmate if they are convicted of violent felonies<\/a>. Senate Republican Leader Brian Jones<\/a>, of San Diego, failed this year to push through a measure that would have made the cooperation mandatory<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is California\u2019s lack of cooperation that forced federal immigration agents to hunt down \u201cviolent criminals\u201d in public, Jones argued. He dismissed arrests, such as that of a 4-year-old girl on life-saving medication in Bakersfield, as \u201ccollateral.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen the federal agents are having to go into neighborhoods and find these violent felons to capture and report and prosecute \u2026 there are going to be collateral arrests in that, and that\u2019s the state that Gov. Newsom and the Democratic leadership have created,\u201d Jones told CalMatters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Assemblymember Tom Lackey<\/a>, a Palmdale Republican who served in the California Highway Patrol for 28 years, said the sanctuary law \u201ccreated all of this fear and chaos.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat we are seeing now is a situation where the supermajority has limited tools to manage immigration; creating a communication breakdown between local and federal law enforcement, and a vacuum that invites a heavier hand from Washington,\u201d he said in a statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Madrid said blaming the tension all on the state\u2019s sanctuary law is an \u201cextraordinarily weak\u201d argument.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf that were the case, this would have been a situation long before,\u201d he said. \u201cIt is consciously deceptive in telling a very, very small part of the problem.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Madrid called the state\u2019s sanctuary law a \u201cpatchwork\u201d policy, he argued immigration is an issue entirely \u201con the doorstep of the federal government.\u201d The Trump administration has missed opportunities to rein in the border, Madrid argued, noting Trump last year helped kill a bipartisan legislative deal<\/a> over border security. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat California has decided to do is to say: \u2018Fine, if you are not going to control border security and \u2026 leave us as the largest border state in the country to deal with it, we are going to accommodate it. We are going to ingratiate people into the fabric of our culture, our politics and our economy,\u2019\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Could support for troops cost Republicans?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Aligning with Trump has its perks. The president \u2014 the face of a growingly populist party \u2014 can galvanize Republican voters and help legislators cement their conservative base. Even as the president\u2019s approval rating slips among Americans<\/a>, Republican voters continue to show strong support for him. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Republicans could lose ground, especially among Latino voters, over Trump\u2019s fierce crackdown on immigration and the protests, Madrid predicted. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Latinos flocked toward Trump in 2024 despite the president\u2019s promise of mass deportation, that threat is no longer \u201cabstract\u201d but \u201cexistential,\u201d Madrid said. Moreover, more Americans are alarmed by Trump\u2019s use of the military on its own people, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHe so overplayed his hand on immigration crackdowns that it\u2019s now about overreach and not about border security,\u201d Madrid said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

California Republicans who agreed to speak with CalMatters endorse President Donald Trump’s military deployment in Los Angeles as necessary to save the state from its Democratic leadership. by Yue Stella Yu, CALMATTERS When is it […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":14582,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[62,64],"tags":[83,85],"class_list":{"0":"post-14580","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-slider","8":"category-california","9":"tag-california","10":"tag-politics"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinosreadytovote.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14580","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinosreadytovote.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinosreadytovote.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinosreadytovote.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinosreadytovote.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14580"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/latinosreadytovote.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14580\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14583,"href":"https:\/\/latinosreadytovote.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14580\/revisions\/14583"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinosreadytovote.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/14582"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinosreadytovote.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14580"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinosreadytovote.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14580"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinosreadytovote.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14580"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}