California argued state law enforcement could handle protests, but the court allowed the National Guard's deployment. Photo / Pasadena Star-News via Getty Images
California argued state law enforcement could handle protests, but the court allowed the National Guard's deployment. Photo / Pasadena Star-News via Getty Images
President Donald Trump can keep the California National Guard in Los Angeles for now, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday evening, delivering a win for the President as he aims to use the military to police protests against his deportation efforts.
The unanimous decision from the three-judge panel of theUS Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit – two of the judges were appointed by Trump in his first term, and the third by President Joe Biden – overturned an order last week from US District Judge Charles R. Breyer, who said Trump had exceeded his authority and violated the Constitution’s 10th Amendment.
Before Breyer’s order took effect, the appeals court panel had said in an emergency order that the National Guard could remain on Los Angeles streets while it considered the case.
The appellate judges said on Thursday (local time) that Trump appears to have lawfully deployed the National Guard in the city, even though he did not consult California Governor Gavin Newsom (D).
Their narrow order was issued on an emergency basis so the federal government could quickly know whether it was allowed to keep the National Guard in place while litigation on the matter continues.
A federal appeals court ruled that President Donald Trump can keep the National Guard in Los Angeles. Photo / Getty Images
Breyer had scheduled a hearing Friday to examine the broader question of when a President is allowed to deploy a state’s National Guard. But in a brief session with the parties, the judge delayed that hearing, saying he was unsure if he still had jurisdiction to weigh in on the matter. He asked both sides to write briefs over the weekend arguing how they think he should proceed.
On social media, Trump hailed the appeals court decision as a “BIG WIN” and suggested it would open the door for similar deployments across the United States if he determines that local law enforcement is “unable, for whatever reason, to get the job done”.
The Trump administration told the San Francisco-based appeals court that protesters in Los Angeles prevented federal law enforcement officers from carrying out their duties related to deportations and that it was within the President’s executive authority to call up the National Guard.
The appeals panel disagreed with the federal government’s stance that Trump’s authority to deploy the National Guard could not be scrutinised by the courts. But the judges also rejected California’s legal argument that a federal statute clearly requires a governor to be consulted before a deployment – rather than just having the President route the deployment command through the governor.
In the end, the court ruled that the President had showed he had at least some reason to believe that protesters interfered with federal law enforcement’s ability to carry out deportation-related duties and that deploying the National Guard was necessary.
The opinion cited evidence from both sides that protesters in Los Angeles threw objects at Immigration and Customs Enforcement vehicles, used commercial dumpsters to breach the parking garage of a federal building and vandalised property.
“Affording appropriate deference to the President’s determination, we conclude that he likely acted within his authority in federalising the National Guard,” the opinion states.
The appeals judges said once the case is fully litigated, Trump is likely to win the argument over what a President must do to deploy a state’s National Guard, which is why they are allowing the Guard to remain in place for now.
Trump had called up 4100 National Guard members and 700 Marines in response to protests that swelled in parts of Los Angeles over the President’s immigration deportation policies.
The court found Trump likely acted within his authority, despite not consulting Governor Gavin Newsom. Photo / Getty Images
In filings, California officials conceded the protests had on occasion turned violent but said thousands of state and local law enforcement officials were more than capable of responding to disturbances. The state said no other President had ever deployed the state’s National Guard over the governor’s objections.
California sought to restrict what the National Guard and Marines could do in Los Angeles and argued the troops should be allowed only to protect federal facilities and personnel.
The broader issue before the courts – which could reach the Supreme Court – may determine how and whether Trump wields state National Guards if demonstrations against his administration continue.
While the protests have mostly quieted over the past week, Latino communities in the Los Angeles area remain tense as federal agents carry out targeted enforcement operations on day labourers, food vendors and workers – sometimes confronting community members eager to defend those at risk of being detained.
Social media accounts are full of videos of Angelenos patrolling neighbourhood streets and demanding warrants and identities from agents. On Thursday, protesters quickly assembled near an entrance to Dodger Stadium to denounce the presence of agents from the Department of Homeland Security, who sought to access the stadium parking lots but were denied entry.
