Pam Bondi dodges questions about what legal threshold is for Trump to invoke Insurrection Act
Attorney General Pam Bondi has declined to say what the president was thinking about the possibility of invoking the drastic emergency powers of the Insurrection Act to respond to the Los Angeles immigration protests.
'Right now in California, we're at a good point,' Bondi told reporters outside the White House, insisting controversial measures like sending federalized California National Guard troops and Marines are 'working' to resolve the crisis.
'We're not scared to go further,' Bondi added. 'We're not frightened to do something else, if we need to.'
The president was similarly vague when asked on Tuesday about his threshold for invoking the Insurrection Act, which would allow active-duty military members to break with the usual strict legal prohibitions on engaging in domestic law enforcement.
'If there's an insurrection, I would certainly invoke it,' Trump said during an Oval Office press conference. 'We'll see.'
The Attorney General said Wednesday that the police response to aligned anti-immigration raid protests in other cities had been more encouraging than that of officials in Los Angeles.
'We've seen it in New York,' she said. 'What happened in New York was very different. NYPD came in right away. NYPD came in and shut it down. We all believe in peaceful protest...There were peaceful protests happening in New York.
At least 25 rallies and demonstrations have broken out across the country in the wake of the conflagration in Los Angeles, in locales including New York, Dallas, Chicago, and San Francisco.
More than 300 people have been arrested over the Los Angeles protests, while at least 14 were arrested across protests in Austin and Dallas, more than 150 have been arrested in San Francisco, and at least 86 have been taken into custody in New York.
Even without the Insurrection Act, federal and state troops in Los Angeles are already edging closer to law enforcement roles in response to the protests, which kicked off late last week in response to immigration raids.
'Military troops are providing protection for federal law enforcement officers as they continue operations to remove the worst of the worst from Los Angeles,' the Department of Homeland Security told The Independent. 'If any rioters attack ICE law enforcement officers, military personnel have the authority to temporarily detain them until law enforcement makes the arrest. The violence against ICE law enforcement must end.'
The state of California is suing the Trump administration, seeking orders barring the military from joining in immigration raids and challenging the overall deployment of the Guard against state leaders' wishes.
'Federal antagonization, through the presence of soldiers in the streets, has already caused real and irreparable damage to the City of Los Angeles, the people who live there, and the State of California,' the state wrote in an emergency filing in federal court on Tuesday. 'They must be stopped, immediately.'
Local leaders have also taken emergency measures, including a curfew for parts of downtown Los Angeles that was instituted on Tuesday following continued spurts of violence and occasional looting.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Los Angeles Times
15 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
The gift Trump never meant to give: the spotlight to Democratic adversary Gavin Newsom
SACRAMENTO — President Trump craves attention and will stoop to any depth to grab it — even pour gasoline on a kindling fire in Los Angeles. But this time he unwittingly provided priceless attention for an adversary. Because Trump needlessly deployed National Guard troops and — more ridiculous, a Marine battalion to L.A. — California Gov. Gavin Newsom was granted a prime-time speaking slot on national cable television to respond. 'We honor their service. We honor their bravery,' Newsom said of the troops. 'But we do not want our streets militarized by our own armed forces. Not in L.A. Not in California. Not anywhere … . 'California may be first — but it clearly won't end here. Other states are next. Democracy is next. Democracy is under assault right before our eyes. The moment we've feared has arrived.' I'm not sure the 'democracy is under assault' message has much traction, but keeping armed combat forces off our streets must be a salable pitch. Regardless, governors almost never get national TV time to deliver entire speeches, even as brief as Newsom's. You've practically got to be nominated for president. But the publicity-thirsty sitting president provided the cameras for California's governor. Newsom's strong address probably boosted his stock within the Democrat Party and revived dormant speculation about a 2028 presidential bid. No longer was the Democratic governor playing respectful nice guy and tempering criticism of the Republican president. Now he was standing up to the bully who loves to use California, Newsom and our progressive politics as a punching bag. Trump's red-state supporters love every swipe at this 'left coast' state. Newsom rose to the occasion, using his greatest asset: invaluable communication skills coupled with telegenic looks. He laid out his version of what happened to turn relatively peaceful protests against federal immigration raids into destructive street violence. And it's the correct version by objective accounts. On Saturday, Newsom said, federal immigration agents 'jumped out of an unmarked van' near a Home Depot parking lot and 'began grabbing people. A deliberate targeting of a heavily Latino suburb … . In response, everyday Angelenos' exercised their constitutional right to protest. Police were dispatched to keep the peace and mostly were successful, the governor continued. But then tear gas, rubber bullets and flash-bang grenades were used — by federal agents, Newsom implied. Then Trump deployed 2,000 California National Guard troops 'illegally and for no reason,' the governor asserted. 'This brazen abuse of power by a sitting president inflamed a combustible situation … . Anxiety for families and friends ramped up. Protests started again … . Several dozen lawbreakers became violent and destructive.' Newsom warned: 'That kind of criminal behavior will not be tolerated. Full stop.' And hundreds have been arrested. But he emphasized: 'This situation was winding down and was concentrated in just a few square blocks downtown. But that's not what Donald Trump wanted … . He chose theatrics over public safety.' In Trump's twisted view, if he hadn't sent in the National Guard, 'Los Angeles would be completely obliterated.' Never mind that the violence was confined to a few downtown blocks, a fraction of a city that spreads over 500 square miles. 'We will liberate Los Angeles and make it free and clean again,' the president promised. Veteran Republican strategist Mike Murphy had it right, telling CNN: 'He's lighting the fire as an arsonist, then claiming to be the fireman.' It reminded me of President Lyndon B. Johnson's manufactured Gulf of Tonkin resolution in 1964 that Congress passed, enabling him to vastly escalate U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. Johnson reported a North Vietnamese attack on U.S. destroyers that many experts later concluded never happened. But I think Trump mainly is obsessed with attracting attention. He knows he'll get it by being provocative. Never mind the accuracy of his words or the wisdom of his actions. Sending in the Marines certainly was an eye-opener. So is staging a military parade on his birthday — an abuse of troops for attention, personal glorification and exercise of his own power. He'll say anything provocative without thinking it through: Tariffs one day, suspended the next. He'll boast of sending San Joaquin Valley water to L.A. for fighting fires when it's physically impossible to deliver it. While Trump was playing politics with immigrants and L.A. turmoil, a poll finding was released that should have pleased him. Californians no longer support providing public healthcare for immigrants living here illegally, the independent Public Policy Institute of California reported. Adult state residents were opposed by 58% to 41% in a survey taken before the L.A. trouble erupted. By contrast, a PPIC poll in 2021 found that Californians favored providing state healthcare for undocumented immigrants by 66% to 31%. Polling director Mark Baldassare concluded the public opposition stems mostly from the view that California taxpayers can't afford the costly program — not that they agree with Trump's anti-immigrant demagoguery. In fact, Newson has proposed paring back the state's multibillion-dollar program of providing Medi-Cal coverage for undocumented immigrants because the state budget has been spewing red ink. Given all the rhetoric about the L.A. protests, the statement that particularly impressed me came from freshman Assemblyman Mark Gonzalez (D-Los Angeles), whose downtown district stretches from Koreatown to Chinatown. 'Rocks thrown at officers, CHP cars and Waymo vehicles set on fire, arson on the 101 freeway — have nothing to do with immigration, justice or the values of our communities,' he said in a statement Sunday. 'These are not protesters — they were agitators. Their actions are reckless, dangerous and playing into exactly what Trump wants.' Gonzalez is a liberal former chairman of the L.A. County Democratic Party who stuck to his point: Hoodlums can't be tolerated. And, thanks to Trump, Newsom was able to make a similar point about the president on national TV: His dangerous, self-serving actions can't be tolerated either.
New York Post
21 minutes ago
- New York Post
Federal judge questions constitutionality of Trump sending National Guard to LA riots: ‘President is, of course, limited'
WASHINGTON — A federal judge expressed skepticism Thursday about the constitutionality of President Trump's order to deploy thousands of National Guard troops to Los Angeles to quell anti-ICE riots. Senior San Francisco US District Judge Charles Breyer heard arguments from attorneys for Trump's Justice Department and California Gov. Gavin Newsom after the Democrat had sued the feds over dispatching roughly 4,000 Guard members to protect officers carrying out immigration enforcement operations. 'We're talking about the president exercising his authority, and the president is, of course, limited,' Breyer, the younger brother of liberal former Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, said at one point in the hearing. Advertisement 3 AP 'That's the difference between a constitutional government and King George.' Brett Shumate, the head of the DOJ's Civil Division, disputed Breyer's characterization of the president's order throughout the hour-long hearing, arguing that the commander-in-chief had 'delegated' the federalizing of the Guard through California's adjutant general, as legally required. Advertisement Shumate also claimed that Newsom was merely a 'conduit' for that order as it passed through the chain of command from Trump to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to the state Guard. 'There's no consultation requirement, pre-approval requirement,' he argued. 'There's one commander-in-chief of the armed forces.' The California attorney general's office countered that allowing Trump's action to stand implied there would be 'no guardrails' for further abuse by the executive branch. 3 Clashes have erupted in LA over the last several days sparked by ICE raids. Barbara Davidson/NYPost Advertisement 3 A demonstrator points his finger towards members of the California National Guard during a protest against federal immigration sweeps in downtown Los Angeles. REUTERS 'The president, by fiat, can federalize the National Guard and deploy it,' an attorney for Newsom said, 'whenever there is disobedience to an order.' While Breyer took issue with the deployment of the National Guard, he appeared more inclined to let stand Trump's order sending around 700 US Marines to the Golden State to assist with the federal immigration crackdown. 'I don't understand how I'm supposed to do anything with the Marines, to tell you the truth,' the judge responded, quibbling with Newsom's legal team over whether their involvement violated the Posse Comitatus Act. Advertisement Breyer did not immediately issue a ruling, but said he hoped to put one out 'very soon.' This is a developing story. Please check back for more information.
The Hill
21 minutes ago
- The Hill
The post-Trump tax cliff
The Big Story While Republicans push to make expiring provisions in President Trump's 2017 tax law permanent, additional measures geared toward working-class Americans are being slated for expiration at the end of 2028. © The Associated Press 'It means that's going to be an issue in the next presidential race,' House Freedom Caucus Chair Andy Harris (R-Md.) said. The major expiring tax breaks in the House-passed version of Trump's 'big beautiful bill' are boosts in the standard deduction, the deduction for seniors, and the child tax credit, along with the cancellation of taxes on tips, overtime pay, and car loan interest. Budget hawks are saying this sets up a tax cliff in the legislation similar to the one Republicans are now trying to surmount, since most of the 2017 Trump tax cuts expire at the end of this year. 'There's a total tax cliff in there. There's about $1.5 trillion worth of taxes that expire in four years, five years, which means what? In five years, they'll just keep them going. This is why we end up with the same problem,' Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) said last week. 'It is 100 percent a gimmick to have tax cuts that you're putting in place for four or five years,' he added. The legislation is likely to undergo substantial changes in the Senate, including a change in the accounting baseline that will allow trillions of dollars worth of deficit additions coming from the extension of previous tax cuts to be ignored. But senators are sounding open to maintaining the split between making the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) permanent and allowing the additional cuts for workers, families, retirees and consumers to expire. The Hill's Tobias Burns and Aris Folley have more here. Welcome to The Hill's Business & Economy newsletter, I'm Aris Folley — covering the intersection of Wall Street and Pennsylvania Avenue. Did someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here. Essential Reads Key business and economic news with implications this week and beyond: Top earners to receive lion's share of income boost from GOP bill: CBO The top one-tenth of the U.S. income spectrum is set to receive the biggest annual boost to its wealth as a result of the House-passed Republican tax cut and spending bill, according to a new analysis from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), while the bottom three deciles are set to lose wealth and the fourth lowest decile will break even. House GOP approves first batch of DOGE cuts House Republicans voted on Thursday to claw back billions of dollars in federal funding for public broadcasting and foreign aid, locking in the first set of slashes made by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Senate votes to end debate on stablecoin bill, teeing up final vote The Senate voted Thursday to wrap up debate on a stablecoin bill, teeing up a final vote on the legislation that would establish regulatory rules of the road for the dollar-backed cryptocurrencies. Walmart heiress funds anti-Trump ad A billionaire Walmart heiress has again taken aim at President Trump — this time encouraging people to participate in protests against his second presidency while Trump holds a military parade in Washington on Saturday. The Ticker Upcoming news themes and events we're watching: In Other News Branch out with more stories from the day: Wall Street ticks closer to its record after Oracle rallies NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock indexes ticked higher on Thursday following another encouraging update … Good to Know Business and economic news we've flagged from other outlets: What Others are Reading Top stories on The Hill right now: Padilla forcibly removed from Noem press conference, handcuffed Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) was forcibly removed and then handcuffed after he interrupted a press conference Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem held in Los Angeles. Read more Republicans lay groundwork for 'total tax cliff' at end of Trump's term Congressional Republicans are laying the groundwork for a tax cliff at the end of President Trump's term in office. Read more What People Think Opinions related to business and economic issues submitted to The Hill: You're all caught up. See you tomorrow! Thank you for signing up! Subscribe to more newsletters here
