California is taking President Donald Trump to court over what state leaders are calling an illegal and dangerous use of the National Guard.
On Monday, Attorney General Rob Bonta and Governor Gavin Newsom filed a lawsuit against Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. They’re trying to stop the deployment of 2,000 California National Guard troops ordered to help Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) crack down on undocumented immigrants in Los Angeles.
Trump Sent Troops Without State Approval
Trump used a rarely invoked law—10 U.S. Code §12406—to take control of California’s National Guard without approval from the state. That law allows the president to call up National Guard troops in three specific situations: a foreign invasion, a rebellion against the U.S. government, or when regular forces can’t enforce federal laws.
But California says none of those conditions exist—and Trump didn’t even bother to go through the required process.
“There is no invasion. There is no rebellion.”
“Let me be clear: There is no invasion. There is no rebellion. The President is trying to manufacture chaos and crisis on the ground for his own political ends,” Bonta said in a statement.
According to the law, any federal orders to the National Guard must be sent through the state’s governor. Governor Newsom says that never happened.
“There’s a protocol. There’s a process. He didn’t care about that.”
That’s what Newsom told MSNBC on Sunday. He says Trump ignored the law and the chain of command.
ICE Raids Sparked Protests, Not Violence
The legal fight began after ICE agents raided a Home Depot on June 6, detaining workers they claimed were undocumented immigrants. Protests quickly broke out across Los Angeles.
ICE and the LAPD responded with tear gas and rubber bullets, even hitting bystanders and journalists. The protests were mostly peaceful, and both the LAPD and California law enforcement said they didn’t need the National Guard’s help.
Overreach, Not Emergency
California’s lawsuit says Trump is abusing his power and overstepping federal limits. The lawsuit argues this unprecedented use of the National Guard without a true emergency violates the Tenth Amendment, which protects state authority.
Bonta and Newsom say the president is using military force to push a political agenda—and they’re asking the courts to stop him.
