Los Angeles unrest draws California Governor Newsom back into fight with Trump
California Governor Gavin Newsom resisted a fight with President Donald Trump over transgender youth in women's sports. He forced his way onto a runway tarmac to make peace with the Republican leader after the Los Angeles wildfires.
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Just last week, he hesitated before speaking out when rumours swirled about a massive federal funding cut to California.
Newsom's restraint ended when Trump usurped the governor's authority over the weekend by deploying the California National Guard to the streets of Los Angeles to quell protests against immigration raids.
'I'm still willing to do what I can to have the backs of the people I represent and whatever it takes to advance that cause, I'll do, but I'm not going to do it when we see the trampling of our Constitution and the rule of law,' Newsom said in an interview with the Los Angeles Times. 'So we all have our red lines. That's my red line.'
California Governor Gavin Newsom and US President Donald Trump in January. File photo: AFP
Newsom said the arrival of troops in the largest city in the Golden State escalated tensions between protesters and law enforcement, which he blamed Trump for intentionally inflaming to sow chaos. Whether Newsom likes it or not, the president's actions also catapulted the governor to the front lines of a Democratic resistance against Trump that he has been reluctant to embrace after his party lost the presidential election in November.
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