More than a dozen California members of Congress are demanding answers from the Department of Homeland Security after about 100 federal agents decked out in tactical gear and masks showed up outside an event over redistricting.
The lawmakers are seeking the true motives behind the large show of force outside the Aug. 14 event in Los Angeles, where California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D), Democratic lawmakers, members of the independent redistricting commission, and others spoke about the newly drawn congressional district maps.
The event was held at the Japanese American National Museum in Little Tokyo and was part of a push by the governor to counter a redistricting play in Texas at the behest of President Donald Trump. Both California and Texas’s maps would likely net Democrats and Republicans five new partisan seats in Congress in the 2026 midterm elections.
“We just wanted to get some questions answered,” U.S. Rep. Laura Friedman (D-CA), who spearheaded the letter, said. “I was at Newsom’s press conference. It was really shocking to have as many as a hundred federal officers in tactical gear just appear.”
The Aug. 26 letter is seeking specific information about who authorized the deployment, the operational justification for its scale, whether Newsom’s comments on redistricting influenced the decision, and details about the two arrests made at the event.
“The American people must be able to trust that Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Border Patrol, and related federal agencies will never use their authority to intimidate civilians on the basis of political or policy differences,” Friedman wrote.
Democratic U.S. Sens. Alex Padilla (CA) and Adam Schiff (CA) and 12 members of California’s congressional delegation signed the letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, ICE acting director Todd Lyons, White House Border Czar Tom Homan, and Greg Bovino, chief patrol agent at Customs and Border Protection.
TRUMP REKINDLES BLUE CITY FEUD WITH NATIONAL GUARD TAKEOVER OF WASHINGTON
“Congress must ensure that federal law enforcement resources are deployed based on legitimate operational needs,” the letter read. “Clear answers in this matter are vital to maintaining that trust. We request a written response to the questions above no later than September 4, 2025.”
Separately, Newsom filed a Freedom of Information Act request with the DHS asking for “all documents and records” related to the operation. Newsom said the presence of federal agents at his press briefing was “intended to intimidate those defending a fair electoral process”.
“Trump’s use of the military and federal law enforcement to try to intimidate his political opponents is yet another dangerous step towards authoritarianism,” Newsom said in a statement. “This is an attempt to advance a playbook from the despots he admires in Russia and North Korea. The Trump administration needs to answer for this pathetic and cowardly behavior.”
The letter also requested information about the administration’s communications with Fox News to embed a reporter and camera crew with the group of ICE agents.
NEWSOM SIGNS REDISTRICTING BILLS, TAKES FIGHT OVER CONGRESSIONAL MAP TO VOTERS
This is the second federal FOIA request filed by the governor’s administration about Trump’s use of the military.
On Aug. 6, Newsom’s office requested documents and records to identify the total expenses incurred to activate the Marines and federalize the National Guard since June 7.