Federal Court to Trump: keeping a standing army is illegal, the federalization of California’s National Guard must end

What you need to know: California wins victory against Trump in court to return California National Guard soldiers to the Governor's control.

SACRAMENTO - In a major win for California, a federal court has directed the Trump Administration to return control of the California National Guard to Governor Gavin Newsom.

Today's ruling is abundantly clear - the federalization of the National Guard in California is illegal and must end. The President deployed these brave men and women against their own communities, removing them from essential public safety operations. We look forward to all National Guard servicemembers being returned to state service.

Governor Gavin Newsom

Read the court ruling here.

How we got here

On June 7, for the first time in our country's history, the President invoked 10 U.S.C. § 12406 to federalize a state's National Guard over the objections of a state's governor. President Trump and Department of Defense Secretary Hegseth transferred 4,000 members of California's National Guard-one in three of the Guard's total active members-to federal control to serve in a civilian law enforcement role on the streets of Los Angeles and other communities in Southern California. California brought suit to challenge that unprecedented action. The litigation is ongoing.

Following a bench trial, a federal judge ruled in August 2025 that President Trump's deployment of federalized National Guard troops in Los Angeles violated the Posse Comitatus Act. This law restricts the military's involvement in domestic law enforcement. That ruling, secured by Governor Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta, is on hold pending the federal government's appeal.

Governor Newsom has warned that although California was the first to be targeted in this way, it would not be the last- a prediction borne out by the President's subsequent unlawful federalization of National Guard troops elsewhere, including in Oregon and Illinois. The federal government had renewed the federalization of these California guard members to at least February 2026.