A federal judge has issued a temporary restraining order directing President Donald Trump to return control of the National Guard to California.
LOS ANGELES — A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order Thursday directing President Donald Trump to return control of the National Guard to California.
The order, which takes effect at noon Friday, said the deployment of the Guard was illegal and both violated the Tenth Amendment and exceeded Trump’s statutory authority.
The White House had no immediate comment on the ruling.
U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer said Trump overstepped his bounds in ordering the deployment of roughly 4,000 National Guard members to Los Angeles after protests erupted over the immigration crackdown.
It was not immediately clear how that would change the situation on the ground.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom sued to block the Guard’s deployment against his wishes. California later filed an emergency motion asking the judge to block the Guard from assisting with immigration raids.
He argued that the troops were originally deployed to protect federal buildings and wanted the court to block the troops from helping protect immigration agents during the raids, saying that involving the Guard would only escalate tensions and promote civil unrest.
In a broad ruling, the judge determined Trump had not properly called the Guard up in the first place.
Maj. Gen. Scott Sherman, speaking in an interview with The Associated Press and one other media outlet, said that as of Wednesday about 500 of the Guard troops have been trained to accompany agents on immigration operations. Photos of Guard soldiers providing security for the agents have already been circulated by immigration officials.
Sherman is commander of Task Force 51, which is overseeing the Guard troops and Marines sent to Los Angeles.
Earlier in the day Breyer said he intended to rule quickly.
“This country was founded in response to a monarch, and the Constitution is a document of limitations. I’m trying to figure out where the lines are drawn,” the judge said before a packed courtroom.
Earlier in the day
A legal showdown unfolded Thursday afternoon as a federal judge heard arguments from both sides on who has the final say in sending federal troops to Los Angeles: Governor Gavin Newsom or President Donald Trump?
The hearing began at 1:30 p.m. in federal court in San Francisco. The outcome will have an impact on protests and immigration raids that are happening across the country, including in San Diego.
Cameras were not allowed inside the courtroom. A producer with CBS San Francisco was in the courtroom, taking notes.
US District Judge Charles Breyer, brother of former Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, presided over the hearing. The Trump administration argued the troops are there to protect federal agents and secure federal property. However, attorneys for the state say that there is evidence indicating President Trump will order them to assist with immigration enforcement, which would violate federal law.
“This brazen abuse of power by a sitting President. Inflamed a combustible situation,” said Governor Newsom during a speech in Sacramento Wednesday.
This week, Governor Newsom filed a lawsuit and a temporary restraining order to stop the expansion of military involvement in Los Angeles immediately. President Trump has sent around 4,000 California National Guard troops and 700 Marines.
“If we weren’t there, if we didn’t bring in the National Guard and the Marines, and you would probably have a city that was burning to the ground, just like it was a number of months ago with the housing,” said President Trump during a fundraising event at the Kennedy Center Wednesday evening.
According to the Los Angeles Police, overnight, more than 70 protestors were arrested, the majority for failing to disperse or violating curfew. Two people were arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer.
Arrest of US Senator Alex Padilla
During a news conference with Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem at the FBI building in Los Angeles, Thursday, US Senator Alex Padilla of California was forcibly removed by security.
Senator Padilla interrupted the news conference to ask questions. Video from the event shows the senator being pushed out of the room by officers. He was ordered to his knees and physically pushed to the ground and handcuffed.
Later, both the senator and the secretary spoke to reporters.
“I wish that he would have reached out and identified himself and let us know who he was and that he wanted to talk. His approach was something that I don’t think was appropriate at all,” said Secretary Noem.
Senator Padilla says for months he and his colleagues have been asking Homeland Security for information about their ramped-up immigration enforcement efforts, but have not gotten any response.
“If this is how the Department of Homeland Security responds to a senator with a question, you can only imagine what they’re doing to farm workers, to cooks, to day laborers out in the Los Angeles community and throughout California and throughout the country,” said Senator Padilla.
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