Newsom would ‘reject’ military deployment
‘It won’t happen,’ the governor says of Trump’s threat to send soldiers into cities.
In his most outspoken public rebuke of President Trump in months, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday that California would “reject” any attempts by the White House to deploy the military in major cities to end civil unrest following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody.
“It won’t happen,” Newsom said during a visit to Hot & Cool Cafe in Leimert Park. “It’s not going to happen. We would reject it. We would push back against that.”
Dubbing himself a “president of law and order,” Trump threatened Monday to send “thousands and thousands of heavily armed soldiers, military personnel and law enforcement officers” into U.S. cities.
Addressing Trump’s threat for the first time, Newsom called the president’s remarks “just another zig and zag deflection from the administration.” The governor said he was pleased to hear U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper also voice opposition to the use of active-duty military forces in law enforcement roles to contain street protests.
Once a frequent Trump critic, Newsom has declined to condemn the president since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The governor has largely described his own silence as a desire to not play politics during a crisis, even as other Democratic governors have taken more combative stances with the White House.
This week, Newsom refused to directly respond to a question about a phone call early Monday between Trump and governors in which the president urged them to crack down harder on protesters.
“I could be part of the daily back and forth in the news cycle and continue to perpetuate the problems that persist in this country,” Newsom said Monday. “Or, I can choose to focus a message that I think is so much more powerful, and I hope has more residence with people watching, and that is: I care more about them than some of the noise I heard on a morning phone call.”
Newsom’s decision to deploy nearly 2,600 California National Guard troops to Los Angeles, Long Beach, Sacramento, San Diego and other areas over the last week also sparked concerns.
The presence of military forces in communities that feel victimized by law enforcement may add to those feelings of fear, said Assemblywoman Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-Los Angeles).
“I think it’s important for people to recognize that we all are looking through life with very different lenses,” she said.
Kamlager-Dove said she discussed the deployment of the Guard troops with Newsom on Wednesday in South Los Angeles and said she felt that he was responding to the needs and requests of cities. Mayor Eric Garcetti called for troops Saturday in anticipation of potential violence and looting.
Brian Ferguson, a spokesman for the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, said Newsom has deployed the Guard only in response to requests from local leaders. The troops were originally intended to focus on the protection of critical infrastructure. But in some instances, depending on direction by law enforcement in a municipality, they are supporting police operations on the ground, Ferguson said.