President Trump's Saturday night "memorandum" federalizing 2000 California National Guard troops is a tentative step toward abusing authorities for domestic use of the military, but a dangerous one.
“Stay safe out there” has added meaning in this post. Thanks for sharing, Professor. Not a substantive legal point at all, but I imagine that the administration is considering similar action in NYC given today’s events (less aggressive protesting downtown).
Thank you for another articulate analysis of current events. It’s not a stretch at all to think that this is meant to escalate events to provide an excuse to invoke the Insurrection Act. It’s especially chilling after seeing pics of tanks rolling through NoVA today.
I would think it is best for the demonstators to stand down after and focus on the illegal detention that has happened. Ice is intentionally creating conflict and starting a fight, and that needs to be shown in court and those agents exposed. There is a trap being laid, and violence springs the trap.
Sounds like ICE is getting desperate, which is making them increasingly sloppy. They're now raiding the most obvious gathering places for undocumented immigrants in the country: the back lot of nearly any given Home Depot. At least it's considerably harder to pull this crap on the DL when it's out in the open.
But yes, fair point about violence springing the trap. That's what happened in '92 when Bush called in the Guard after L.A.-area rioting began after the Rodney King beating news began spreading.
Having lived through the “1992 Los Angeles Insurrection” if not on the ground, then through the windows of a Century City law office, that’s not what happened at all. The riots started after the verdicts were announced on Wednesday April 29th and blew totally out of control on Thursday, during which time Governor Wilson mobilized the National Guard, but they were unable to mobilize until the next day due to a shortage/almost complete lack of ammunition until the next morning Friday, and streamed in in force over the rest of the day, while at the same time by Bush invoked in Insurrection Act, initially ordering the deployment of the same National Guard troops that had already been into the city by the governor, as well as federal troops that arrived on Saturday. But and most critically, by the time federal troops finally arrived on Saturday the violence of Thursday and Friday had already largely subsided, with most commentators believing that the crucial factor in the explosion of the violence from Thursday into Friday was because of physical inability the California National Guard to physically deploy when they were initially deployed by Pete Wilson. The decision of GHW Bush to invoke the Insurrection Act on the morning of April 30th had nothing to do with the escalation of the violence on April 29th and 30th.
My apologies: it slipped my mind that this occurred after the trial, not the initial beating, and I'd forgotten the confusing overlap between Wilson & Bush each attempting to mobilize the Guard. (I was alive at the time, but not in L.A.) Thanks for clarifying, and I should've double-checked before posting.
That said, my main point – admittedly explicated in a separate post downthread – was simply concern that Trump (or someone like Stephen Miller) might attempt to argue L.A. is "out of control just like it was in 1992, so like Bush, Trump needs to call in the Guard." (Which is obviously pretextual & a severely warped distortion of reality, but that's Trump's standard MO.)
I know Trump thinks he can command the Marines based on the National Security Act (not that he's right, but still), but there's a rather significant legal difference between deploying Marines to "secure the border" versus into America's second-largest city. He does *not* need to open Pandora's box. (But we all know how poor his impulse control can be.)
I'm also skeptical that Homan has the legal authority to arrest state officials, but either way, doing so is *not* likely to help Trump in the least, despite his delusions. The main reason Trump's gotten away with so much thus far on mass deportations is because so much of it was done covertly. Stating the obvious that going after day laborers at any given Home Depot is the ICE equivalent to shooting fish in a barrel.
If you didn't see it -- on Sunday evening 6/8/25 Governor Newsom was interviewed by Jacob Soboroff and Jacob asked him what he wanted to say to Trump, Homan and Miller -- and he let them have it. He told Trump he was acting illegally and making things worse, and he challenged him - if you're going to arrest me I'm here - come and get me. It was something to behold. I don't think anyone has ever stood up to Trump like that in his entire miserable life. California is going to court Monday. The interview was on MSNBC.
Trump and Baby Goebbels Miller are pushing ICE far beyond what their numbers can manage.
Homeland Security is trying to beef ICE up with untrained agents from other agencies — and it looks it. Let’s hope the National Guard can keep the amateur agents from creating more of a mess than already have.
Note that the CA national guard has a lot of Hispanic-heritage members. They may be more conflicted if ICE again raids elementary school graduation or backyard birthday party.
It is a tricky decision. ICE's violence is escalating and the more and more people are protesting when their neighbors are being abducted. So-called ICE agents do not identify who they are, they wear masks and they have no search warrants. To me - that is illegal and a violation of Constitutional rights. Every part of due process was given to the violent Jan 6 insurrectionists - none of that is being given to Hispanic/Latino appearing or otherwise non-white people. They're sweeping up people who are here legally. So to not protest does not seem the right thing to do. IMO.
I am not sure I can agree "it is best for demonstrators to stand down" entirely. I would say instead be present, suggest that any person who may think standing near some masked ICE who have been told to arrest large numbers at any cost is NOT where anyone who could be Mistaken as an illegal alien should be, but I do think those who feel they can stay completely within the standards for a peaceful protest action should instead stand in groups completely facing away from the ICE and National Guard people. Make no step forward toward them, face away but be heard stating your 1st amendment right to protest and state the reason for your protest.
Just today its been announced that, among other things, the operation will be ongoing across the length and breath of LA County for a month, and any California official who interferes will be arrested and charged with felony obstruction.
In light of the President’s well established hatred of California, it’s hard to see how this ends well.
The problem is, and Gov Newsom addressed this, the violence is not being done by the protesters but by outside agitators - anarchists that see their opportunity to act out. I'm guessing some of them are MAGA and maybe even sent in by the Trump Admin -- but that is just a guess. For any large protest there are always selfish idiots that show up to act out either for their own pleasure or to discredit the protesters. We saw that in the protests for George Floyd's murder and we saw that in the LA riots in 1992. Los Angeles has not seen riots like that since 1992 -- until now when Trump is stoking the fire to give him an excuse to declare martial law on California. That is my educated guess as to his motives. I think that California has been in his crosshairs since his first term - he wants to take us over. But I think that his rage at Musk is so extreme and he can't regulate his own emotions - so he creates chaos and violence because externalizing it is the only way he can regulate his emotions and feel powerful again. He is a very sick and dangerous individual. (I live in Orange County California - in the southern part of the state border LA County.)
It is about the illegal detention and the government agencies that are doing it. Yes Trump visa ICE et. al. is instigating the conflict and plenty of people know that and want to resist in a more dramatic way. The courts and Congress don't have any ability to stop the admin.
Thank you for replying to my cartoon. I wanted to attach SCOTUS Class of 2025 personally but you can’t attach cartoons in comments. It’s posted and out there somewhere.
Thank you for your analysis! It is so easy for overwhelm and dread to get the best of us these days, so it is incredibly helpful to have your reasoned take on events to offer balance. Again, from the heart -- thank you.
Thanks for the rapid response Steve, very helpful! I had been thinking "I wonder what Steve Vladeck would say" and poof the notification for this post appears. Good stuff.
Except the ppl w/i this administration have proven time and time again that rules and laws mean nothing to them. They're willing to roll the dice in court. After all, if a judge rules against them, they say the judge was crooked. If the judge rules in their favor, he/she appears compromised (all by design.)
Trump hasn't come close to being the dictator or even authoritarian everyone sweats over. He appeals verdicts he doesn't like, caves on some, and has been remarkably obedient for a supposed dictator.
You can’t say torture doesn’t work after The Dearest Donald has put the law on the rack and wrung out of it so many admissions of pretexts for grants and claims of extraordinary executive powers to meet emergencies which the one executive acting alone can incontestably pronounce into existence through the expedient of legal magic words, notwithstanding mountains of contrary real-world evidence.
Even worse, The Dearest Donald creates self-fulfilling emergencies. He will foment violence to justify emergency powers to quell that violence. That was his ultimate J6 strategy. But he lost his nerve at the moment of truth. Now he has surrounded himself with courtiers to goad his rash appetites for revenge, cruelty, money, and dominance, so that he will not lose his nerve this time around.
This time around The Dearest Donald’s strategy is more refined, more multifaceted, and less clumsy, than it was on J6, when success ultimately hinged on the events of a single riotous day. This time around, The Dearest Donald’s strategy is to overcome our polity by wearing away its framework institutions using not riots, but law. He attacks the judiciary on its own ground, while Roberts hopes to avoid confrontation with the executive by backing up stepwise into the abyss.
Trump is doing more every week trying to instigate his own Reichstag Fire-style event to create a spectacle of a violent threat to public order, to give him a pretext for using violence against those opposed to his coup and for suspending civil liberties and habeas corpus.
Please lay off the hyperbole. He's done no such thing. Look back at all the many apoplectic predictions of the last several months. None have come true. They've got a worse track record than the extinction of polar bears and penguins or the disappearance of snow and Arctic ice.
“Stay safe out there” has added meaning in this post. Thanks for sharing, Professor. Not a substantive legal point at all, but I imagine that the administration is considering similar action in NYC given today’s events (less aggressive protesting downtown).
Are we actually, as Americans, at the stage where we're discussing the implications of military personnel being directed to kill American protesters?
I always hoped that Kent State would always mean something. I am a fool.
Very helpful. Thank you!
Thanks. Very useful.
Thank you Steve, much appreciated!
Thank you for letting us know about this right away, we all need to be vigilant!
Thank you for another articulate analysis of current events. It’s not a stretch at all to think that this is meant to escalate events to provide an excuse to invoke the Insurrection Act. It’s especially chilling after seeing pics of tanks rolling through NoVA today.
It’s gonna escalate quickly -only because of him…dangerous on so many levels
I would think it is best for the demonstators to stand down after and focus on the illegal detention that has happened. Ice is intentionally creating conflict and starting a fight, and that needs to be shown in court and those agents exposed. There is a trap being laid, and violence springs the trap.
Sounds like ICE is getting desperate, which is making them increasingly sloppy. They're now raiding the most obvious gathering places for undocumented immigrants in the country: the back lot of nearly any given Home Depot. At least it's considerably harder to pull this crap on the DL when it's out in the open.
But yes, fair point about violence springing the trap. That's what happened in '92 when Bush called in the Guard after L.A.-area rioting began after the Rodney King beating news began spreading.
Having lived through the “1992 Los Angeles Insurrection” if not on the ground, then through the windows of a Century City law office, that’s not what happened at all. The riots started after the verdicts were announced on Wednesday April 29th and blew totally out of control on Thursday, during which time Governor Wilson mobilized the National Guard, but they were unable to mobilize until the next day due to a shortage/almost complete lack of ammunition until the next morning Friday, and streamed in in force over the rest of the day, while at the same time by Bush invoked in Insurrection Act, initially ordering the deployment of the same National Guard troops that had already been into the city by the governor, as well as federal troops that arrived on Saturday. But and most critically, by the time federal troops finally arrived on Saturday the violence of Thursday and Friday had already largely subsided, with most commentators believing that the crucial factor in the explosion of the violence from Thursday into Friday was because of physical inability the California National Guard to physically deploy when they were initially deployed by Pete Wilson. The decision of GHW Bush to invoke the Insurrection Act on the morning of April 30th had nothing to do with the escalation of the violence on April 29th and 30th.
Good timeline here: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/1992_Los_Angeles_riots
My apologies: it slipped my mind that this occurred after the trial, not the initial beating, and I'd forgotten the confusing overlap between Wilson & Bush each attempting to mobilize the Guard. (I was alive at the time, but not in L.A.) Thanks for clarifying, and I should've double-checked before posting.
That said, my main point – admittedly explicated in a separate post downthread – was simply concern that Trump (or someone like Stephen Miller) might attempt to argue L.A. is "out of control just like it was in 1992, so like Bush, Trump needs to call in the Guard." (Which is obviously pretextual & a severely warped distortion of reality, but that's Trump's standard MO.)
No problem. And to your point, Tom Holman has announced that the ICE operation in LA County be ongoing for a month, and any California official who interferes - from the Governor on down - will be arrested on felony charges. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/06/07/la-ice-arrests-protests-national-gaurd/#link-TZHZRYTLQ5BJXGEBTYD73B2LXM
That and Trump said last night that his next step would be to bring in Marines from Camp Pendleton. Mind boggling
I know Trump thinks he can command the Marines based on the National Security Act (not that he's right, but still), but there's a rather significant legal difference between deploying Marines to "secure the border" versus into America's second-largest city. He does *not* need to open Pandora's box. (But we all know how poor his impulse control can be.)
I'm also skeptical that Homan has the legal authority to arrest state officials, but either way, doing so is *not* likely to help Trump in the least, despite his delusions. The main reason Trump's gotten away with so much thus far on mass deportations is because so much of it was done covertly. Stating the obvious that going after day laborers at any given Home Depot is the ICE equivalent to shooting fish in a barrel.
If you didn't see it -- on Sunday evening 6/8/25 Governor Newsom was interviewed by Jacob Soboroff and Jacob asked him what he wanted to say to Trump, Homan and Miller -- and he let them have it. He told Trump he was acting illegally and making things worse, and he challenged him - if you're going to arrest me I'm here - come and get me. It was something to behold. I don't think anyone has ever stood up to Trump like that in his entire miserable life. California is going to court Monday. The interview was on MSNBC.
Trump and Baby Goebbels Miller are pushing ICE far beyond what their numbers can manage.
Homeland Security is trying to beef ICE up with untrained agents from other agencies — and it looks it. Let’s hope the National Guard can keep the amateur agents from creating more of a mess than already have.
Note that the CA national guard has a lot of Hispanic-heritage members. They may be more conflicted if ICE again raids elementary school graduation or backyard birthday party.
It is a tricky decision. ICE's violence is escalating and the more and more people are protesting when their neighbors are being abducted. So-called ICE agents do not identify who they are, they wear masks and they have no search warrants. To me - that is illegal and a violation of Constitutional rights. Every part of due process was given to the violent Jan 6 insurrectionists - none of that is being given to Hispanic/Latino appearing or otherwise non-white people. They're sweeping up people who are here legally. So to not protest does not seem the right thing to do. IMO.
Ice (Trumps masked gestapo), National Guard against its citizens, A Fascist Supreme Court. Ruled by a want to be dictator. Support that, no thanks!
I am not sure I can agree "it is best for demonstrators to stand down" entirely. I would say instead be present, suggest that any person who may think standing near some masked ICE who have been told to arrest large numbers at any cost is NOT where anyone who could be Mistaken as an illegal alien should be, but I do think those who feel they can stay completely within the standards for a peaceful protest action should instead stand in groups completely facing away from the ICE and National Guard people. Make no step forward toward them, face away but be heard stating your 1st amendment right to protest and state the reason for your protest.
Just today its been announced that, among other things, the operation will be ongoing across the length and breath of LA County for a month, and any California official who interferes will be arrested and charged with felony obstruction.
In light of the President’s well established hatred of California, it’s hard to see how this ends well.
Face away? No. Doubt many ICE or CA National Guard are familiar with that British custom of protest.
Confusing people who carry weapons can be hazardous. Face coverings on agents means THEY are scared already.
The people should just disperse. This will leave National Guard just standing around. DJT will look like a fool and a wannabe dictator.
The problem is, and Gov Newsom addressed this, the violence is not being done by the protesters but by outside agitators - anarchists that see their opportunity to act out. I'm guessing some of them are MAGA and maybe even sent in by the Trump Admin -- but that is just a guess. For any large protest there are always selfish idiots that show up to act out either for their own pleasure or to discredit the protesters. We saw that in the protests for George Floyd's murder and we saw that in the LA riots in 1992. Los Angeles has not seen riots like that since 1992 -- until now when Trump is stoking the fire to give him an excuse to declare martial law on California. That is my educated guess as to his motives. I think that California has been in his crosshairs since his first term - he wants to take us over. But I think that his rage at Musk is so extreme and he can't regulate his own emotions - so he creates chaos and violence because externalizing it is the only way he can regulate his emotions and feel powerful again. He is a very sick and dangerous individual. (I live in Orange County California - in the southern part of the state border LA County.)
It is about the illegal detention and the government agencies that are doing it. Yes Trump visa ICE et. al. is instigating the conflict and plenty of people know that and want to resist in a more dramatic way. The courts and Congress don't have any ability to stop the admin.
Thank you for replying to my cartoon. I wanted to attach SCOTUS Class of 2025 personally but you can’t attach cartoons in comments. It’s posted and out there somewhere.
Cheers,
Ink Wells
Remembrance Day Nov.11 2025
Remember these Guy’s didn’t fight and die so a bunch of Billionaires could party like Gadsby, celebrating taking money from the poor!
Remembrance Day Nov.11 2025
Remember these Guy’s didn’t fight and die so a bunch of Billionaires could party like Gadsby, celebrating taking money from the poor!
Thank you for your analysis! It is so easy for overwhelm and dread to get the best of us these days, so it is incredibly helpful to have your reasoned take on events to offer balance. Again, from the heart -- thank you.
Thank you Professor for talking me down off of the ledge...for now.
Thanks for the rapid response Steve, very helpful! I had been thinking "I wonder what Steve Vladeck would say" and poof the notification for this post appears. Good stuff.
Thank you SO much for taking the time to write this on the weekend! You are keeping me sane during this crazy times.
Except the ppl w/i this administration have proven time and time again that rules and laws mean nothing to them. They're willing to roll the dice in court. After all, if a judge rules against them, they say the judge was crooked. If the judge rules in their favor, he/she appears compromised (all by design.)
They may bitch & moan about it, but in most cases they eventually cave. (See, e.g., Abrego Garcia.)
Trump hasn't come close to being the dictator or even authoritarian everyone sweats over. He appeals verdicts he doesn't like, caves on some, and has been remarkably obedient for a supposed dictator.
Thank you for filling in the blanks we won’t hear anywhere else!
You can’t say torture doesn’t work after The Dearest Donald has put the law on the rack and wrung out of it so many admissions of pretexts for grants and claims of extraordinary executive powers to meet emergencies which the one executive acting alone can incontestably pronounce into existence through the expedient of legal magic words, notwithstanding mountains of contrary real-world evidence.
Even worse, The Dearest Donald creates self-fulfilling emergencies. He will foment violence to justify emergency powers to quell that violence. That was his ultimate J6 strategy. But he lost his nerve at the moment of truth. Now he has surrounded himself with courtiers to goad his rash appetites for revenge, cruelty, money, and dominance, so that he will not lose his nerve this time around.
This time around The Dearest Donald’s strategy is more refined, more multifaceted, and less clumsy, than it was on J6, when success ultimately hinged on the events of a single riotous day. This time around, The Dearest Donald’s strategy is to overcome our polity by wearing away its framework institutions using not riots, but law. He attacks the judiciary on its own ground, while Roberts hopes to avoid confrontation with the executive by backing up stepwise into the abyss.
Trump is doing more every week trying to instigate his own Reichstag Fire-style event to create a spectacle of a violent threat to public order, to give him a pretext for using violence against those opposed to his coup and for suspending civil liberties and habeas corpus.
Please lay off the hyperbole. He's done no such thing. Look back at all the many apoplectic predictions of the last several months. None have come true. They've got a worse track record than the extinction of polar bears and penguins or the disappearance of snow and Arctic ice.