California mobilizes National Guard amid concern over unrest

SACRAMENTO, Calif. ( AP) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday mobilized 1,000 members of the National Guard amid other security precautions over concerns of civil unrest ahead of President Donald Trump leaving office.

The state also erected a temporary chain link fence around the state Capitol, bolstering other temporary and permanent barriers, and the California Highway Patrol has refused to issue permits for rallies that had been planned there.

The moves come as the FBI and others warn of the potential for nationwide civil unrest before or during next week’s inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden.

Newsom said Guard members will “protect critical infrastructure” including the state Capitol while other state officials monitor threats and requests for aid around the clock.

“We’re taking important steps here in California in light of what we saw in our nation’s Capitol just last week,” Newsom said, calling it “an undemocratic and unconscionable assault on our republic and the freedom upon which our nation was founded.”

“We will respond to any potential violent civil unrest leading up to or during the inaugural, if required,” he said in a video message. “We’re treating this very seriously and deploying significant resources to protect public safety, critical infrastructure and First Amendment Rights, but let me be clear: there will be no tolerance for violence.”

Oregon, Washington, Ohio and Pennsylvania are among states that also have deployed the National Guard. The Guard also has been placed at the U.S. Capitol, which was attacked and ransacked last week by Trump supporters.

Brian Levin, director of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino, said Newsom is wise to take the precautions.

Battleground states where Trump raised questions about the election outcome seem to be in more danger, he said, as are Pacific Northwest, Great Lakes and Southern states. Yet California has an active effort to recall Newsom, anger over the governor’s stay-at-home orders aimed at slowing spread of the coronavirus, and ample numbers of right-wing activists.

The Capitol already has been the site of weekly weekend clashes between Trump supporters and counter-demonstrators.

“We’ve had continuing protests, but we kind of know who the characters are, so the biggest concern I think would come from some wild card,” he said, referring to a loner or a small group organized outside of social media that has been largely shut down or scrubbed since the clash in Washington, D.C.