In New Filings, Attorney General Bonta Urges Ninth Circuit to Block Trump from Using California’s National Guard as His Own Personal, Traveling Police Force

Since the Ninth Circuit first stayed the lower court's order blocking the federalization of the California National Guard in June, facts have significantly changed undermining the Trump Administration's arguments

OAKLAND - California Attorney General Rob Bonta presented new evidence to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit that seriously undermines the Trump Administration's arguments for the federalization of the California National Guard. Since President Trump first unlawfully federalized California National Guard troops in early June, the Trump Administration has dramatically broadened its efforts to use these troops beyond the Los Angeles area, and for activities unrelated to protecting federal personnel and buildings. In new filings, Attorney General Bonta highlights that the instances of civil unrest in Los Angeles that purportedly gave rise to the deployment have subsided; that the Trump Administration has deployed members of the National Guard for routine law enforcement operations far from Los Angeles in ways that have nothing to do with the original basis for their deployment; and that the Administration planned to send all of the remaining Guard members to Portland, Oregon, and just yesterday, sent members to Chicago, Illinois - moves that cannot be reconciled with the Administration's assertions about the harm it would suffer without California National Guard boots on the ground in the Los Angeles area. In light of these major changes, the Ninth Circuit should lift its stay of the district court's injunction.

"President Trump is seeking to deploy the California National Guard as his own personal, traveling police force - indefinitely, anywhere in the country. This is a far cry from what the Ninth Circuit considered back in June when the Administration claimed it would suffer serious harm if the National Guard were not available in Los Angeles. The Administration's recent actions in Portland and Chicago entirely undermine any basis for a continued stay of the order blocking federalization," said Attorney General Bonta. "I urge the Ninth Circuit to vacate its earlier stay order in light of the dramatically different landscape today - and the President's clear intent to use and abuse the military domestically. The escalating use of American communities as a training ground for the military must stop now."

"As a co-equal branch of government, the courts need to be the counterbalance to Trump's authoritarian lunacy," said Governor Gavin Newsom. "Instead of fighting a non-existent conflict for the President, our servicemembers deserve to be at home with their families and back to civilian life."

FEDERALIZATION ORDER

In June, Attorney General Bonta and Governor Newsom filed a lawsuit challenging the Trump Administration's unlawful orders to federalize the California National Guard and utilize National Guard troops for civilian law enforcement in Los Angeles, in violation of federal statutes and constitutional limitations. That same week, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California granted California emergency relief, blocking the federalization order and returning command of the California National Guard to Governor Newsom; that order is currently stayed by the Ninth Circuit pending appeal.

In a new motion, Attorney General Bonta lays out the case for why circumstances today are fundamentally different than when the Ninth Circuit first issued its stay back in June. Not long after the court entered its stay order, the Trump Administration began deploying members of the National Guard to areas far from Los Angeles on missions that had nothing to do with the original basis for federalizing the Guard. The Trump Administration also issued an order extending the federalization from its initial 60-day period to 150 days, even while acknowledging that there was little, if any, remaining security risk to federal personnel and property in Los Angeles.

More recently, President Trump has expressed a desire to use Democratic cities as a "training ground" for the military, abandoning his pretense that these troops are necessary to quell any sort of chaos or unrest. After his effort to federalize the Oregon National Guard was blocked by a court in Oregon, the Trump Administration transported hundreds of the federalized California National Guard troops to Portland. The district court in Oregon called the Administration's action a "direct contravention" of the prior court order and, at the request of the States of Oregon and California, issued a second order prohibiting the Administration from deploying federalized members of the National Guard in Oregon.

The ever-expanding mission of California's federalized National Guard troops bears no resemblance to what the Ninth Circuit provisionally upheld in June. And it is causing irreparable harm to California, to the nation's democratic traditions, and to the rule of law. Attorney General Bonta respectfully asks the Ninth Circuit to vacate its earlier stay and allow the district court's temporary restraining order blocking the federalization of these troops to go into effect, or in the alternative, he asks for the Ninth Circuit to block the federalization order and return the National Guard to the Governor's command.

A copy of the motion is available here.

POSSE COMITATUS ACT

In a separate letter, Attorney General Bonta alerts the Ninth Circuit to developments showing why the Court should lift a stay of a separate trial court order blocking the Administration from further violations of the Posse Comitatus Act.

In August, the Attorney General's Office presented evidence of Posse Comitatus Act violations during a three-day trial before the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. The Court subsequently granted a permanent injunction enjoining the Trump Administration from engaging in the same or similar activity in the future. The Court's order is temporarily paused while the Ninth Circuit considers the federal government's motion for a stay.

In their motion for a stay, the Trump Administration argued that "National Guard members who remain in Los Angeles continue to play an important role in protecting federal personnel and property . . . and the district court's injunction threatens their ability to serve that function." Yet, the Trump Administration made clear its plans to order all 300 federalized California National Guard members to Portland, Oregon. In doing so, it clearly demonstrated that there is no pressing need for the troops in Los Angeles. Attorney General Bonta urges the Ninth Circuit to lift its administrative stay forthwith and deny defendants' motion for a stay pending appeal.

A copy of the letter is available here.

AMICUS BRIEFS

Attorney General Bonta is committed to holding President Trump and his Administration accountable for overreaching their authority under the law and infringing on Californians' constitutional rights. Attorney General Bonta has previously supported Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul's, Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield's and D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb's lawsuits challenging the Trump Administration's unlawful deployment of National Guard troops to their cities.