Gavin Newsom Blasts Masked Border Agents Descending on Rally: 'Pathetic'
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
California Governor Gavin Newsom condemned the appearance of Border Patrol agents outside a downtown Los Angeles rally as "pretty sick and pathetic."
The Democratic governor, who is widely expected to launch a bid for the White House in 2028, suggested the operation was directly ordered by President Donald Trump.
"It was top down. You know that for a fact. They'll deny it—well, maybe they won't deny it," Newsom told reporters after delivering a news conference on the state's redistricting efforts.
Newsweek has contacted Newsom's office and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for comment via email.
California Governor Gavin Newsom speaks during a news conference in Los Angeles on August 14.
California Governor Gavin Newsom speaks during a news conference in Los Angeles on August 14.
Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP
Why It Matters
Newsom, a prominent figure in progressive politics, has increasingly positioned himself as a leader of resistance against the Trump administration's policies.
On Thursday, Border Patrol agents swept into downtown Los Angeles' Little Tokyo, converging near a news conference where Newsom and other state leaders were outlining California's pushback against Texas' redistricting plans. During the operation, at least one person was taken into custody.
The action was part of a broader wave of immigration enforcement across Los Angeles and other Southern California communities, tied to Trump's pledge to carry out a mass deportation campaign. Federal officials have cited arrests of undocumented immigrants with violent criminal convictions as evidence of the policy's effectiveness. But those ensnared in the nationwide raids have also included asylum-seekers, green card holders, people who overstayed their visas and migrants still awaiting their immigration court hearings.
What To Know
While Newsom was speaking inside the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center in Little Tokyo, Border Patrol agents gathered outside and took at least one person into custody.
Footage from the scene showed agents in tactical gear leading a handcuffed individual through the crowd.
During his address, Newsom lambasted Trump and pointed to the activity outside, telling attendees, "Right outside, at this exact moment, there are dozens and dozens of ICE agents."
The move has sparked outrage from Democratic lawmakers.
"This is just completely unacceptable," Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass told reporters. "This is a Customs and Border Patrol that has gone amok. This absolutely has to stop. There was no danger here."
Tricia McLaughlin, a spokesperson for DHS, wrote on X that Bass "must be misinformed."
"Our law enforcement operations are about enforcing the law—not about Gavin Newsom," McLaughlin added.
Border Patrol Sector Commander Gregory Bovino told Fox 11 Los Angeles: "We're here making Los Angeles a safer place. Since we won't have politicians that will do that, we do that ourselves."
"What we witnessed today outside the Democracy Center in Little Tokyo was nothing short of political theater—a weaponization of federal law enforcement against the legislative process and against democracy itself," state Senator María Elena Durazo said in a statement shared with Newsweek.
"The timing was no coincidence. Border Patrol agents showing up with zip ties and military-style gear just feet away from elected officials exercising their constitutional duties is a brazen act of intimidation," she continued.
Political tensions have heightened in recent weeks over a redistricting battle. On Thursday, Newsom and other Democratic leaders announced that they would move forward with plans to redraw California's congressional maps to favor their party.
Under the proposed maps, Democrats seek to gain five additional House seats in the 2026 election. Newsom has called for a special election on November 4 to let voters weigh in on the new maps, with state lawmakers expected to officially schedule the election next week, according to the Associated Press.
The effort is a response to a push by Texas Republicans to gain five more congressional seats of their own during the midterms.
What People Are Saying
California Governor Gavin Newsom told reporters on Thursday: "They chose the time, manner and place to send their district director outside right when we're about to have this press conference—everything you know about Donald Trump's America ... about the authoritarian tendencies of the president."
State Senator María Elena Durazo said in a statement shared with Newsweek: "This administration is using immigration enforcement as a tool of political repression, targeting communities and silencing dissent. When federal agents conduct 'roving patrols' outside press conferences where governors and legislators are discussing the state of our democracy, we are witnessing the tactics of authoritarianism, not law enforcement."
What Happens Next
Newsom and Trump have been embroiled in a war of words after protests rocked Los Angeles in June following a series of immigration raids. The president deployed the National Guard to quell the resistance. The governor responded by suing the Trump administration over the deployment, and a ruling on the case is pending.
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