Newsom vs Trump immigration policy: More than 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines have been deployed in Los Angeles, California, in recent days on the orders of US President Donald Trump and despite objections from California Governor Gavin Newsom.
After protests and violence were triggered by federal immigration raids in several cities in the border state over the weekend, Newsom said California’s forces were adequately equipped to handle the flare-up. He said the National Guard was called in without his consent, which is procedurally required in such cases.
Reporters asked Trump on Monday if he supported border czar Tom Homan’s threat of arresting state officials who obstructed the raids. He said, “I would do it if I were Tom. I think it’s great. Gavin likes the publicity, but I think it would be a great thing. He’s done a terrible job… Look, I like Gavin Newsom, he’s a nice guy, but he’s grossly incompetent.”
In response, Newsom posted on X, “The President of the United States just called for the arrest of a sitting Governor. This is a day I hoped I would never see in America.” California Attorney General Rob Bonta has also filed a lawsuit over the use of National Guard troops, the Associated Press reported. He told reporters, “We don’t take lightly to the president abusing his authority and unlawfully mobilising California National Guard troops.”
This isn’t the first time that Newsom has clashed with the US President. It is also being seen as part of his greater political ambitions, and Trump’s aggressive push against immigration in his second term.
Who is Gavin Newsom?
Newsom, 57, is a San Francisco native. His father was a well-known judge, but he was primarily raised by his mother. He was in primary school when his severe dyslexia became known, posing challenges in reading, writing, spelling, and basic math.
His political career began in 1997, as part of the legislative body San Francisco Board of Supervisors. According to The Independent, he was elected as mayor of San Francisco in 2004, after “being supported in his campaign by Democratic heavyweights including Bill Clinton and Al Gore.”
He took progressive positions on several social issues, such as banning smoking advertisements, penalising landlords who raised rent beyond the mandate, and directing the city to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, years before it was legalised nationwide.
Newsom first ran for the governor’s office in 2009 but failed, then had a successful bid in 2018. He was re-elected in 2022. During the 2024 presidential elections, he was a loyalist of then-US President and Democratic candidate Joe Biden, dismissing popular concerns over his age and fitness to run for the post.
The chatter around Biden also led to some discussions on Newsom replacing him on the ballot, which he denied. However, it hasn’t stopped speculations of him contesting the 2028 presidential elections, at a time when the party lacks popular faces with nationwide name recognition.
What has been his relationship with Trump?
Newsom campaigned in 2018 for the governor’s post and said he would make California a “resistance state” in the face of Trump’s policies.
However, in an interview with The Atlantic in 2024, he spoke about how they had not always been in a state of confrontation. “We had the baseline of a relationship that benefited California significantly,” he said, and even thanked Trump in 2020 for the federal agencies’ assistance during the state’s forest fires that year.
Over time, the two leaders have frequently traded allegations. For instance, Trump has frequently attacked Newsom over his policies, including during the California wildfires in January, over the dwindling water supplies in the state. Newsom’s office challenged his criticisms.
Trump has also referred to him as “Newscum”, which the Democrat termed a lame “seventh-grade nickname”.
Some commentators say Newsom has matched Trump when it comes to generating publicity around himself, projecting himself as willing to go further than the Democratic Party establishment in strongly challenging the President. In March, he launched a podcast where he also invited Republicans, including former Trump chief strategist Steve Bannon, in what was seen as an attempt to appeal to newer demographics.
Newsom has framed the latest face-off as an overreach against states’ rights – an important issue in the federal power structure of US politics – and claimed that Trump “manufactured a crisis and is inflaming conditions.”
On the other hand, Trump has said the protests against immigration raids are by the “Radical Left”, and that federal officers were simply carrying out their duties in deporting immigrants who were illegally in the country. The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency, or ICE, which is at the centre of recent events, arrested a record 2,200 people just on June 4, according to NBC News.
During the 2024 presidential elections, Newsom was a loyalist of then-US President and Democratic candidate Joe Biden, dismissing popular concerns over his age and fitness to run for the post. (Official FB) 
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