Appeals court temporarily blocks judge's ruling to return control of
National Guard to California
[June 13, 2025]
By OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday
temporarily blocked a federal judge’s order that directed President
Donald Trump to return control of National Guard troops to California
after he deployed them there following protests in Los Angeles over
immigration raids.
The court said it would hold a hearing on the matter on Tuesday. The
ruling came only hours after a federal judge’s order was to take effect
at noon Friday.
Earlier Thursday, U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer ruled the Guard
deployment was illegal and both violated the Tenth Amendment and
exceeded Trump’s statutory authority. The order applied only to the
National Guard troops and not Marines who were also deployed to the LA
protests. The judge said he would not rule on the Marines because they
were not out on the streets yet.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who had asked the judge for an emergency
stop to troops helping carry out immigration raids, had praised the
earlier ruling.
“Today was really about a test of democracy, and today we passed the
test,” Newsom said in a news conference before the appeals court
decision.
The White House had called Breyer's order “unprecedented” and said it
“puts our brave federal officials in danger.”
“The district court has no authority to usurp the President’s authority
as Commander in Chief,” White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said in a
statement. "The President exercised his lawful authority to mobilize the
National Guard to protect federal buildings and personnel in Gavin
Newsom’s lawless Los Angeles. The Trump Administration will immediately
appeal this abuse of power and looks forward to ultimate victory on the
issue.”
Marines in civil disturbance training at nearby base
About 700 Marines have been undergoing civil disturbance training at
Naval Weapons Station Seal Beach in Orange County, California. Nicholas
Green, an attorney for the state, told the court: “I have been told by
the office of the governor that within the next 24 hours, 140 Marines
will replace and relieve National Guard members in Los Angeles.”
Typically the authority to call up the National Guard lies with
governors, but there are limited circumstances under which the president
can deploy those troops. Trump federalized members of the California
National Guard under an authority known as Title 10.
Title 10 allows the president to call the National Guard into federal
service under certain limited circumstances, such as when the country
“is invaded,” when “there is a rebellion or danger of a rebellion
against the authority of the Government,” or when the president is
unable “to execute the laws of the United States.”
Breyer said in his ruling that what is happening in Los Angeles does not
meet the definition of a rebellion.
“The protests in Los Angeles fall far short of ‘rebellion,’” he wrote.
California sued the federal government
Newsom sued to block the Guard’s deployment against his wishes.
California later filed an emergency motion asking the judge to block the
Guard from assisting with immigration raids.
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DHS police and National Guard protect the outside the Metropolitan
Detention Center, Wednesday, June 11, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP
Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
The governor argued that the troops were originally deployed to
protect federal buildings and wanted the court to block the troops
from helping protect immigration agents during the raids, saying
that involving the Guard would only escalate tensions and promote
civil unrest.
Maj. Gen. Scott Sherman, commander of Task Force 51, which is
overseeing the Guard troops and Marines sent to Los Angeles, said
that as of Wednesday about 500 of the Guard troops had been trained
to accompany agents on immigration operations. Photos of Guard
soldiers providing security for the agents have already been
circulated by immigration officials.
None of the Marines have been trained to go on immigration raids,
and it is not yet clear if they eventually will, Sherman said.
Trump improperly called up the Guard, judge says
In his broad ruling, the judge determined Trump had not properly
called the Guard up in the first place.
The lawsuit argued that Title 10 also requires that the president go
through governors when issuing orders to the National Guard.
Brett Shumate, an attorney for the federal government, said Trump
complied with the statute by informing the general in charge of the
troops of his decision and would have the authority to call in the
Guard even if he had not.
In a brief filed ahead of the Thursday hearing, the Justice
Department said Trump’s orders were not subject to judicial review.
“Courts did not interfere when President Eisenhower deployed the
military to protect school desegregation. Courts did not interfere
when President Nixon deployed the military to deliver the mail in
the midst of a postal strike. And courts should not interfere here
either,” the department said.
“Our position is this is not subject to judicial review,” Shumate
told the judge.
Breyer, who at one point waved a copy of the Constitution, said he
disagreed.
“We’re talking about the president exercising his authority, and the
president is of course limited in that authority. That’s the
difference between a constitutional government and King George,” he
said.
Protests intensified
The protests over immigration raids in Los Angeles intensified after
Trump called up the Guard and have since spread to other cities,
including Boston, Chicago and Seattle.
Trump has described Los Angeles in dire terms that Mayor Karen Bass
and Newsom say are nowhere close to the truth.
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