Brief filed with circuit court hearing case against Trump’s use of military in Los Angeles warns of continued abuse of military in other U.S. cities 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – This week, U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, joined fellow Senate Judiciary Democrats Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), and 15 additional Senators in filing an amicus brief with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in the lawsuit brought against President Trump for his misuse of the U.S. military earlier this year. 

“President Trump’s deployment of the military in Los Angeles and D.C. is just another stepping- stone on his quest to consolidate immense executive power. President Trump’s actions pose a significant threat to the separation of powers—which have served our country well for so long—by allowing the President to federalize state National Guard troops despite Congress’s clear constitutional authority. Trump is now threatening to deploy the military in other cities, setting an extremely dangerous precedent that pushes us closer to authoritarianism,” said Senator Welch. “Our arguments outline the President’s clear violations of the Constitution and urge the Courts to act and preserve our democracy.” 

The lawsuit came from the State of California after Trump he deployed thousands of members of the California National Guard and U.S. Marine Corps to Los Angeles without legal justification or approval from state or local officials. The brief filed by the Senators in Newsom v. Trump warns of the potential for continued abuse of the military should the Court show unwarranted deference to the President. 

“Donald Trump made his true motives for the deployment of our military in Los Angeles plain – instead of improving safety, he is focused on spectacle; instead of protecting Americans, he is punishing cities and states he believes are against him. Trump’s abuse of power is clear, illegal, and unconstitutional – and our arguments to the Court explain why this case must be the line drawn in the sand to prevent further misuse of our servicemembers on the streets of American cities,” said Senator Schiff. 

“Donald Trump’s militarized spectacle in Los Angeles was a blatantly unlawful attempt to distract from his failing political agenda and enact his cruel mass deportation agenda. Trump’s deployment of the military to ‘blue’ cities across America has never been about public safety — it’s about retribution and control,” said Senator Padilla. “This abuse of power is a threat to much more than just California or immigrant communities: if the Circuit Court allows the President to bypass the Governor of California to federalize the National Guard to suppress peaceful protests for immigrants’ rights, what’s to stop him from suppressing other rights across the country? Our arguments to the Court make clear that Trump’s unprecedented militarization of Los Angeles should not be used as a playbook for terrorizing other cities across America.” 

“Deploying our military to one of our own cities is a scare tactic, a waste of resources, and a constitutional crisis. The President is abusing his role as Commander in Chief and threatening multiple rights guaranteed in our Constitution aimed to protect us from dictatorship. As he threatens to bring his scare tactics to Chicago, the courts must clarify and rule against these abuses that undermine our national security,” said Senator Durbin. 

“Our concern that President Trump will continue to act in bad faith and abuse his power is borne out by his recent deployment of state militias to Washington, D.C. and his stated intent to deploy state militias in other “blue” cities,” the Senators wrote. 

The brief was signed by Senators Welch, Schiff, Padilla, Durbin, and Sens. Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.). 

Read and download the amicus brief.  

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