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Iowa AG Brenna Bird joins in backing Trump’s military deployment to LA unrest
Bird joined 25 other Republican AGs in
Jun. 11, 2025 1:02 pm, Updated: Jun. 11, 2025 1:43 pm
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Iowa Republican Attorney General Brenna Bird joined 25 other GOP state attorneys general Tuesday in supporting President Donald Trump’s decision to deploy National Guard troops to Los Angeles to quell violent unrest against Trump’s mass deportation policies.
California’s Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has asked a court to put an emergency stop to the military helping federal immigration agents, with some guardsmen now standing in protection around agents as they carried out arrests. The judge chose not to rule before a hearing Thursday.
“We will always defend the right to peacefully protest, but there’s nothing peaceful about arson, assault, and anarchy,” the 26 attorneys general wrote in a joint statement. “If you set police cars on fire, throw Molotov cocktails at law enforcement, and loot businesses, you must be held accountable.”
Bird and the other Republican attorneys general blasted California's Democratic leaders, accusing them of condoning “lawlessness” and saying they left Trump with no choice but to activate thousands of National Guard soldiers.
“When local and state officials won’t act, the federal government must,” according to the statement. “We stand with law enforcement, we support President Trump’s action, and we will not let chaos take hold in our states.”
Los Angeles police enforced a downtown curfew Tuesday night that lifted early Wednesday morning, making arrests, deploying officers on horseback and using crowd control projectiles to break up a group of hundreds demonstrating against Trump’s immigration crackdown, the Associated Press reported.
Trump also deployed Marines to aid in quelling the anti-immigration enforcement protests, which at times have turned violent, though none were seen on the streets Tuesday, according to the AP.
In a public address Tuesday evening, Newsom called Trump’s actions the start of an “assault” on democracy.
Newsom’s motion for a temporary restraining order states Trump’s deployment of military personnel without authorization from the state’s governor has unnecessarily inflamed tensions and civil unrest.
“Federal antagonization, through the presence of soldiers in the streets, has already caused real and irreparable damage to the City of Los Angeles, the people who live there, and the State of California. They must be stopped, immediately,” the motion states.
“While some protestors began to engage in unlawful behavior, the majority did not, and state and local law enforcement agencies contained the situation,” according to the court filing. “And state and local law enforcement agencies have quickly and effectively responded to these limited incidents, including by making dozens of arrests. Indeed, Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) and Los Angeles Sheriff Department (LASD) have substantial training and experience responding to protests and riots on even larger scales than what Los Angeles has experienced in recent days.”
Newsom has asked a judge to issue an order prohibiting National Guard troops from engaging in law enforcement activities beyond the “immediate vicinity” of federal property as the lawsuit proceeds.
Protests have taken place near a series of federal buildings in downtown Los Angeles, including the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building, a detention facility and federal courthouse. The requested order would block troops from patrolling communities or otherwise engaging in general law enforcement activities.
The Justice Department warned granting the motion would jeopardize the safety of Department of Homeland Security personnel.
In their lawsuit, Newsom and California Attorney General Rob Bonta argue Trump exceeded the president’s authority under the law by federalizing the National Guard without the state’s consent, infringing on state sovereignty.
“President Trump’s unprecedented order attempts to usurp state authority and resources via 10 U.S.C. § 12406, a statute that has been invoked on its own only once before in modern history and for highly unusual circumstances — when President Richard Nixon called upon the National Guard to deliver the mail during the 1970 Postal Service Strike,” according to the California Attorney General’s Office. “This is also the first time since 1965 — when President Johnson sent troops to Alabama to protect civil rights demonstrators — that a president has activated a state’s National Guard without a request from the state’s governor.”
Trump on Tuesday left open the possibility of invoking the Insurrection Act, which authorizes the president to deploy military forces inside the U.S. to repel invasion, suppress rebellion or to enforce the law in certain situations. It’s one of the most extreme emergency powers available to a U.S. president.
“If there’s an insurrection, I would certainly invoke it. We’ll see,” he said from the Oval Office. Later the president called protesters “animals” and “a foreign enemy” in a speech at Fort Bragg.
Newsom — whom Trump suggested Monday should be arrested — has accused the administration of manufacturing a crisis and “intentionally causing chaos, terrorizing communities, and endangering the principles of our great democracy.”
“It is an unmistakable step toward authoritarianism. We will not let this stand,” Newsom said in a statement.
Iowa Rep. Miller-Meeks responds to Davenport rally, spurred by LA protests
Iowa Republican U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks issued a statement Wednesday in response to protests in Davenport and across the country targeting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
“ICE agents put their lives on the line to keep our communities safe,” Miller-Meeks said. “The manufactured outrage in Davenport and around the country is not about standing up for justice, protesters are demanding that violent, illegal immigrant criminals be allowed to stay in our country without consequence.”
She noted her support of Trump’s tax and spending policy bill, which authorizes 10,000 more border security agents and completes construction of the fence along the U.S. Southern border with accompanying technology.
“I will never allow Iowa to become the next Los Angeles,” Miller-Meeks said. “We will protect our neighborhoods, enforce our laws, and support those who put their lives on the line to keep us safe.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Comments: (319) 398-8499; tom.barton@thegazette.com
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