A three-judge panel on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that President Donald Trump can keep control of the California National Guard members he deployed to Los Angeles following anti-ICE protests in the city.
“Affording appropriate deference to the President’s determination, we conclude that he likely acted within his authority in federalizing the National Guard,” the panel wrote, also finding that Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA), who filed the initial lawsuit against the deployment, would not have had veto power over the president even if the governor were not notified of the deployment ahead of time.
The ruling blocks U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer’s order last week that ruled Trump’s deployment of the guard was illegal, arguing that the deployment would only be lawful in a time of “rebellion or danger of a rebellion.” Breyer’s order was stayed by the appeals court just hours after it came down.
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Trump deployed the guard following a wave of violent protests against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids that sought to deport illegal immigrants in Los Angeles. The protests calmed after Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass implemented a curfew in the city, though it has since been lifted.
The ruling comes just days after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth deployed an additional 2,000 National Guard troops to the city.